By David Harder on May, 9, 2019

3 Necessities to Stay Out of That Pesky Career Dinosaur Club!

Virtually every month, someone got in my office and claimed a particular employer has age bias. Last week, I asked someone what happened. She went on to tell me that an interview with a company she found very attractive ended pretty quickly. She complained, “People in the film industry are only looking for kids.”

Before we continue, those words already tell me we have a career dinosaur. But, I asked her for some evidence from the interview itself. “Well, early-on the hiring manager said that all the jobs in her department work very closely with analytics. I responded it wasn’t on the job description but I would be open to learn.”

I came back to her and said, “Well, I actually work with this company and if you made it through the door, you would have found a large number of people happily working there who are older than you.” Then, I asked that we return to the topic of analytics. “Tell me what you learned last year.” She looked at me like I was pushing her into strange territory. “Let me rephrase that, how much have you learned in the past week? The employer was probably trying to tell if you are an active learner. In other words, are your curious and interested and pursuing the kind of knowledge that keeps you current?” “Of course I am,” she responded. “OK, please give me a few examples of that.” Once again, I got this untoward and angry expression, possibly the same one given to the hiring manager at the studio.

Welcome to the Career Dinosaur Club. This is the one where members are still waiting for the world to bend to their needs rather than become active and enthusiastic members of the new world of work.

Accelerating change is impacting every profession, organization, and worker. In essence, we are in the greatest restructuring of work since the dawn of the industrial revolution and that, my friends, is good news! Technology is eliminating task work, that mind-numbing repetitive work that continued for centuries. The work that so many have their panties in a bundle about losing is and was boring. Because of technology, task work gets cheaper every minute. And yes, keeping up with it requires an entirely new mindset. We find evidence of the need for this new mindset in America’s growing underemployment problem. Right now, about 50% of our workers describe themselves as underemployed.

Our politicians, from both sides of the fence, are exacerbating the problem by not telling the truth. We are entering the biggest fundamental restructuring of work since the dawn of the industrial revolution. Gaining entry into the new world of work requires telling the truth and taking responsibility. The last time I looked, JFK was the last President who didn’t work from a focus group. In other words, we need leaders with the courage to tell the truth and to have a fair degree of accuracy in what the truth about work actually is!

Here’s my version. Technology isn’t getting rid of work, it is getting rid of tasks. You know, boring, repetitive, mind-numbing, continuous, tasks. Looking at the truth through a modern lens, technology is offering us freedom. But, after being shackled to jobs whose primary purpose was to offer security, freedom sounds terrifying, a bit like unemployment.

I’ve spent the last 30 years helping people find the work they were born to do and the work they love. For 30 years, that required that I play the role of an outsider. But now, everything that we suggested is becoming the norm. In other words, doing the work that you love is the only fuel we can find that drives people to change themselves. There is a mindset that will serve you again and again if you want to stay fresh and new and valued in today’s and tomorrow’s workplace.

THE 3 MINDSETS THAT KEEP US OUT OF THE CAREER DINOSAUR CLUB

A Healthy & Enthusiastic Relationship with Technology

Healthy means that we use technology to learn and connect with others. We don’t use technology to check-out.

Before anyone responds, “Well of course, think this one through carefully.

Enthusiastic Curiosity and Active Learning

Active learning has become the single most important skill set in new hires.

Active learners don’t become obsolete.

Career Dinosaurs are dismissive towards continual learning. They hold up their degrees and certifications as all the credentials they need in order to be entitled to the work. Today’s and tomorrow’s new workplace doesn’t offer traditional security. Security is derived from our growth. In fact, the best of us learn, unlearn, and relearn virtually every day.

It can be terrifying to jump in. But, when we do, the results are sublime. We are no longer dull. We are not only ready for the questions of sharp hiring managers, we could actually teach them something new. Questions like,

What is the most important book you read this year?

How do you learn about changes in our profession?

What is the most impactful thing you’ve recentyl learned?

Develop Courage Skills

A bit of inside information.

Successful people are used to the experience of fear.

Today’s average college graduate will change careers not jobs 4-6 times.

We used to change jobs or careers just a few times, if at all. For the last 28 years, we have shown people the way to the work they love whether that is in a unique job or a business. Invariably, they have had to learn a few life skills to give them the option of doing the work they love. Remember how I used to be an outsider? Let’s play with a little old fart language. “Back in the day, we didn’t have to sell ourselves. Only special people had to do that.”

People who love their work are willing to be uncomfortable!!!

So, they were willing to learn life skills that required a bit of courage to learn. You know, the ones they don’t teach in school. In fact, the very schools that didn’t teach us and are not teaching our children wealth, happiness, success, sales, entrepreneurism, uniqueness, etc.

Just what are these skills?

Active Self-Acceptance

Drawing Health Attention to Ourselves and Giving it to Others

Building Customized Support Systems

Basic Presentation Skills

The Ability to Quickly Find the Needs and Expectations of Others

Brought to you by David Harder, President – Inspired Work, Inc.

Schedule 15-Minutes to Discuss Your Workplace or Career with David (Here)