The Illusion of Security

Many of us who grew up in a typical middle class family in America over the past 50 years have been fed the following blueprint: 

- Do well in school (e.g. getting good grades)

- Get into college in order to pursue a "practical" degree

- Graduate and find a "real" job

- Work hard, get married, buy a house

- Set aside some money for retirement (e.g. 401k plans in my generation)

...wash, rinse, repeat...and then retire. This seemed like a pretty simple formula when our parents and teachers were drilling it into us. After all, it appeared to work for them and those that came before. However, those of us who had this model presented to us and are approaching the middle phase of our lives are faced with a rude awakening. A good number of us invested into a model that is obsolete and being phased out before our very own eyes. The industrial revolution consisted of a model that worked well for over one hundred fifty years. Human kind was able to make huge leaps in technology and streamline processes in order to create more for a larger number of people and cheaper. We found ways to do it so well that our industrialized societies ended up in surplus-which then led to the paradigm of consumerism, (which is a whole other conversation).

Now we stand at the threshold of the early stage of the information and connection economy. The game has already changed and wiped out many of the traditional hierarchical models that the Industrial Age instituted, (e.g. The music business). This world will require all of us to accept more responsibilities and lead. We can no longer clock in and clock out and just coast. 

This is our time to synergize our skills, experience, and passion in order to work along side one another and add greater value! Change is ongoing and will never cease. Life is movement and a willingness to adapt-unlike rigidity. Choose to develop yourself and then become a servant of many!