What do you like most about your profession? Least? If you had a different career, what other occupation would you have?
I can’t remember the last time I pondered these weighty questions, but last week a collective of inquisitive teenagers sat me down and forced me to appraise my career path.
Flathead High School was hosting its annual career fair. A broad assemblage of adult professionals — wildlife biologists, firefighters, chefs, health care specialists — gathered inside the gym to speak with roughly 400 curious freshmen and offer guidance for their future. I felt fortunate to be asked to participate and was especially relieved that none of the kids asked, “What’s a newspaper?”
It turned out to be a great exercise for me and hopefully the young ones as well. How often do we actively review one of the most important aspects of our lives, something we spend about one-third of our adulthood doing? You’re bound to spend about as much time with your coworkers as your spouse, and as many hours sitting at your desk as inside your cozy home.
How did you choose your profession?
This was the most common inquiry I faced, and each and every time I balked at the answer as I interrogated myself internally — “How did I get here?” When I was their age, I had no clue where life was going and how I would pay the bills. What’s a mortgage? Why is a credit score important? Even as a college student approaching graduation, the concept of a career seemed mind-boggling.
How are we supposed to know what we want to do for the better part of our lives?
This fundamental question has become more complicated and challenging than ever before. A new study came out last week that said nearly 40 percent of jobs in the U.S. are at risk of disappearing in the next 15 years because of automation. That’s not a typo — four out of 10 jobs gone by 2032.
Foreign countries are often blamed for taking away American jobs but robots are the real menace. Technological advancements are poised to improve efficiency and overall operating costs for businesses, but the downside is that worker responsibilities are being minimized. The industries expected to undergo the most significant transformations include transportation, manufacturing, financial services, retail trade and storage. Less-educated workers face the highest risks of automation, according to the study by research firm PwC.
I have an intimate connection to this quandary in the Digital Era. My dad owned and operated a printing business that sustained our family. And then computers came along and everything changed. Now I’m a newspaperman working in an industry facing a similar tectonic shift.
Many more prospective workers, particularly with blue-collar backgrounds, face a similar dilemma in choosing their career. What if what I want to do, or what I’m good at, is being rendered irrelevant?
So when this future generation of America’s workforce asked me for guidance in picking their path, my response was honest and hopeful but tinged with trepidation.
Do what you enjoy doing, pursue the best opportunities that allow you to make a healthy living and work your tail off.
And make sure you can do it better than a robot.