Yesterday President Obama came to Baton Rouge,La. He visited the historic McKinley High School to give a town hall meeting. Some questioned the choice of location. But when it all played it out it was a good thing he did chose that location.
The questions he received were pretty good. I would say 90% of them were of substance. He is known for riffing for long periods giving an answer. This time around he was good at keeping his answers short.
There was one answer he gave that really caught my attention. I can't recall the question exactly. However it had to do with jobs. He remarked that the times are different. Dropping out of school and getting a job at the local factory was a ticket to the middle class life he said. If you worked hard back then you was set.
But those times are different. He mentioned going to auto plants and how they were clean and quiet. Quiet because there were more machines than people making the cars. What once took 1000 men takes 100 now to do the same job. I'm still quoting President Obama. And to bring the fact further home look at this video. Notice all the machines. Go look up a car assembly line from just the 80's and notice the difference.
His last point on the question is what I want to speak on. He said to work in those factories now you must have some knowledge in math and science, part of stem. In addition to that you must constantly be retraining and retooling. To compete in the new economy you can't stay stagnant skills wise.
Now you know adults can be resistant to change. We expect that from our parents and grandparents. In particular those from the WW2 and baby boomer era. But know this resistance also comes from the children of the last forty years. This group that is going to suffer the most.
They are still stuck on the get a good education and good job mantra our parents taught us. Anything that deviates from that mandate given from high is seen with suspension. They are scared to learn anything new. In spite of what the news say and what they're experiencing. Family and friends are constantly going back to college to get more education. But the only they get is more DEBT. Hoping the new skills they learned in school are not already obsolete.
It is time for these individuals to come into the new century. You must be willing to learn new skills that can pay RIGHT NOW. Jobs are moving over seas. American companies are coming up with fancy names like restructuring and retooling. In other words they're about to restructure you out the job unless... Unless you've been staying ahead of the curve and getting certified in something the employer need. Saving you from a round of layoffs....this time.
What if you decided to go for what you know without worrying about what your employer is doing ?
What if you decide to take a certification course at the local community college in accounting ? You know have a skill you can offer to a small business. Or maybe you take a online course in catering and cater for a small baby shower to get some exposure ? What if ?
What if you stopped being scared to learn a new skill or trade. Maybe your future will look brighter and you won't care what happens because you're your own boss. I will leave you with this article. And expand on the subject in another post.
Udemy and online learning
The questions he received were pretty good. I would say 90% of them were of substance. He is known for riffing for long periods giving an answer. This time around he was good at keeping his answers short.
There was one answer he gave that really caught my attention. I can't recall the question exactly. However it had to do with jobs. He remarked that the times are different. Dropping out of school and getting a job at the local factory was a ticket to the middle class life he said. If you worked hard back then you was set.
But those times are different. He mentioned going to auto plants and how they were clean and quiet. Quiet because there were more machines than people making the cars. What once took 1000 men takes 100 now to do the same job. I'm still quoting President Obama. And to bring the fact further home look at this video. Notice all the machines. Go look up a car assembly line from just the 80's and notice the difference.
His last point on the question is what I want to speak on. He said to work in those factories now you must have some knowledge in math and science, part of stem. In addition to that you must constantly be retraining and retooling. To compete in the new economy you can't stay stagnant skills wise.
Now you know adults can be resistant to change. We expect that from our parents and grandparents. In particular those from the WW2 and baby boomer era. But know this resistance also comes from the children of the last forty years. This group that is going to suffer the most.
They are still stuck on the get a good education and good job mantra our parents taught us. Anything that deviates from that mandate given from high is seen with suspension. They are scared to learn anything new. In spite of what the news say and what they're experiencing. Family and friends are constantly going back to college to get more education. But the only they get is more DEBT. Hoping the new skills they learned in school are not already obsolete.
It is time for these individuals to come into the new century. You must be willing to learn new skills that can pay RIGHT NOW. Jobs are moving over seas. American companies are coming up with fancy names like restructuring and retooling. In other words they're about to restructure you out the job unless... Unless you've been staying ahead of the curve and getting certified in something the employer need. Saving you from a round of layoffs....this time.
What if you decided to go for what you know without worrying about what your employer is doing ?
What if you decide to take a certification course at the local community college in accounting ? You know have a skill you can offer to a small business. Or maybe you take a online course in catering and cater for a small baby shower to get some exposure ? What if ?
What if you stopped being scared to learn a new skill or trade. Maybe your future will look brighter and you won't care what happens because you're your own boss. I will leave you with this article. And expand on the subject in another post.
Udemy and online learning
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