The world is changing as it always has and the work world is no exception.
There are careers available today that have never existed before while
careers that have been around for decades are rapidly disappearing.
Today, though, I am seeing deeper changes. Not only is our work changing,
but our very concepts of work and career are changing. In fact, in
some ways, I am seeing 180 degree changes from the past. The old rules
are failing to apply to many of us and the new rules are only just
forming. This column is my attempt to better understand these changes
and give you some idea of where we are all headed.
As you may know, I have been involved in podcasting since its earliest
days. Over the years, this has led to much more computer consulting
work that is podcasting-related. Along with my computer knowledge,
though, I am starting to actually assist others in producing their
own podcasts, working more on the creative side than with the technology
itself. My conversations with these new clients have helped me develop
some interesting ideas about how work and career are changing. I am
finding, though, that these changes don’t just apply to creative
careers, but are beginning to effect all careers, regardless of the
type of work you do.
1. Increasingly, you drive your work and career, not some external
force
In the past we may have accepted whatever work presented itself and
been happy. Actors would listen to their agents and managers and
high-tech workers would seek out any company that had a job opening
in their
area of expertise. We always looked to what others were offering
us and chose between those options.
Today, though, I can see a 180 degree turn. As the costs involved
in starting your own company, producing your own television show
or writing
and selling your own book drop to almost zero, there are fewer and
fewer reasons not to pursue these careers. Why search out a job working
for someone else, when you can develop your own projects, or your
career, working at what appeals to you most?
Sure, not everyone will want to start their own company or develop
their own projects. There will always be traditional jobs and careers
to fulfill their needs. Those people who want to move beyond these
traditional roles, though, are seeing immense new opportunities,
with lower and lower risks, allowing them to pursue their career
dreams,
whatever they might be.
2. You must become responsible for developing your own projects
In such a changing environment, one of the most dramatic changes is
your focus. You are now responsible for developing your own projects.
The era of “the pitch” is rapidly coming to an end. In
the past, you could develop an idea for a television show, book or
high-tech project or product and then “shop” that project
around to producers who had the cash necessary to implement it. Hopefully,
you would find the funding and your project would become reality.
Now the situation is much different. In most cases, you are expected
to have a working prototype, a completed episode, an independent
version of your film, before others are willing to take a risk
on you. You
have to have more than a proposal. In some cases, you need a complete
product, Where before others drove this process, you are now in charge,
for good or ill. You need to conceive your own projects, fund them
and implement them on your own,
Just as before, not everyone will want to take on this new role,
even though there are significant benefits to be found. These people
will,
at the very least, need to find others who can assist them in what
I call these producing roles to make their creations a reality.
At its very core, for you and I, this means that instead of looking
for others to “give” us a job, we must take an active role
in creating a career and not simply letting a career happen to us.
We have to find those things that are most interesting to us and then
develop ways of making them happen, whether through the traditional
methods currently in play or the exciting, new and a bit scary, world
in which we now live.
- END -
Career
Opportunities
