New York Times columnist Thomas L. Friedman has a piece that is an absolute must-read, about what he believes is the impetus behind much of the economic agita that has taken hold in the US and Europe - it is, he writes, "income anxiety and the stress over what it now takes to secure and hold a good job.
Friedman writes: "I believe the accelerations set loose by Silicon Valley in technology and digital globalization have created a world where every decent job demands more skill and, now, lifelong learning," because everybody needs to be prepared for the possibility - in fact, the likelihood - that the jobs for which they train simply will not exist for the entirety of their working lives.
An example: Brian Krzanich, CEO at of Intel, tells Friedman that he believes his grandchildren will not know how to drive. "Since he has teenage daughters, that means self-driving vehicles should be fully deployed in 25 years, at which time you won’t 'steer' your car but will program it on a smartphone or watch or glasses. Sounds like fun — unless you’re one of the millions who drive a truck or cab for a living."
You can read the entire column click here.
Friedman writes: "I believe the accelerations set loose by Silicon Valley in technology and digital globalization have created a world where every decent job demands more skill and, now, lifelong learning," because everybody needs to be prepared for the possibility - in fact, the likelihood - that the jobs for which they train simply will not exist for the entirety of their working lives.
An example: Brian Krzanich, CEO at of Intel, tells Friedman that he believes his grandchildren will not know how to drive. "Since he has teenage daughters, that means self-driving vehicles should be fully deployed in 25 years, at which time you won’t 'steer' your car but will program it on a smartphone or watch or glasses. Sounds like fun — unless you’re one of the millions who drive a truck or cab for a living."
You can read the entire column click here.
- KC's View:
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I thought it was important to point this column out, in part because yesterday I referred you to an "Amazon is the devil" column by a writer who has a very different view of the world, and in part because we tend to have a lot of discussion here about the public policy moves - in concert with private enterprise - required by such shifts. (I can't say I'm surprised by the discussion, since I tend to be the one who gets it rolling ... it is a conversation that intrigues me. But I also know that I get email from a percentage of the MNB community in the "Amazon is evil" vein.)
It struck me as kind of symbolic that while I had not seen the Friedman column, it was MNB reader Daniel McQuade who pointed me to it ... and he'd read it while "sitting in Mumbai, teaching Indian students about Global Entrepreneurship (like you I get to travel globally and hang with the life blood of the future) and I always "preach" about life long learning....which by the way I have more of a desire to do as I get along in years..."
