The use of the word "Great" is fixed permanently on periods of distress in American life: the Great Depression, the Great Recession, while at the moment we await the Great "AI-something." Once again, the workforce is under stress and this time, "great" may not prevail against the word, existential.
We hold these self-evident eras of American history containing our true individual stories of job loss for the history books. Now, as the new millions live another "Great" era in technological progress, the acceptance of job losses is labeled, inevitable. I'm the first generation, they say, that will not prosper beyond my parents, own a home, live without huge debt, manage a one-track career to retirement, receive social security. Neither existential nor inevitable sound hopeful.
Many people after losing their career in the "Great eras" came back in the workforce. There were low-pay jobs to be found in their gap in 2008-2012. For millions of others the lengthy period of adjustment turned into a lifestyle because, with hindsight, the big data revolution progressed into the AI revolution.
For today's college graduates the hiring realm looks no different than their education rigor in that, unrelenting testing cued for memorization is superseded by hyped science-driven theories in psychology+neurology, thus, enacting many new hire benchmarks. As a result, new hires expect wondrous diversity in their workplaces. Quickly, they'll began realizing that businesses are nominally diverse, political, assume a posture of mini-cultures comprising people who statistically benchmarked alike. Predictable people in predictable cultures.
Recycled professionals have been to the world’s woodshed. Recycled workers experienced family and financial chaos, re-skilling, managing relational complexities in non-career jobs. But unlike much of the TikTok generation, experienced recycled pros didn't need constant affirmation about their opinions and social media content. The Great Recession’s trials tested their character, strength and life purpose.
Human stories about change are neither resume nor social sciences benchmarking projects. Companies can pre-test recycled professionals all they want with their corporate competency models and instantly miss true character. A business willing to look at a recycled individual will more likely find genuineness and loyalty.
HR should accept that an increasing population of professionals have career blips, the gap, the weird job, the time of re-imagining all of which bring wisdom that no business school can instill. Character is not taught; it is lived and tested while under pressure. Act 1 always precedes Act 2. We are watching yet another "Great" workforce purge awaiting to learn the final label that will stick as the AI industry hallucinates for the entire world how progressive and wonderful it will be to not have a job.
I'd much prefer to work alongside people of strong character who have already fought against the mad world.
Robert Waters, 2016, (v.2 2020), (v.3 2026)
We hold these self-evident eras of American history containing our true individual stories of job loss for the history books. Now, as the new millions live another "Great" era in technological progress, the acceptance of job losses is labeled, inevitable. I'm the first generation, they say, that will not prosper beyond my parents, own a home, live without huge debt, manage a one-track career to retirement, receive social security. Neither existential nor inevitable sound hopeful.
Many people after losing their career in the "Great eras" came back in the workforce. There were low-pay jobs to be found in their gap in 2008-2012. For millions of others the lengthy period of adjustment turned into a lifestyle because, with hindsight, the big data revolution progressed into the AI revolution.
For today's college graduates the hiring realm looks no different than their education rigor in that, unrelenting testing cued for memorization is superseded by hyped science-driven theories in psychology+neurology, thus, enacting many new hire benchmarks. As a result, new hires expect wondrous diversity in their workplaces. Quickly, they'll began realizing that businesses are nominally diverse, political, assume a posture of mini-cultures comprising people who statistically benchmarked alike. Predictable people in predictable cultures.
Recycled professionals have been to the world’s woodshed. Recycled workers experienced family and financial chaos, re-skilling, managing relational complexities in non-career jobs. But unlike much of the TikTok generation, experienced recycled pros didn't need constant affirmation about their opinions and social media content. The Great Recession’s trials tested their character, strength and life purpose.
Human stories about change are neither resume nor social sciences benchmarking projects. Companies can pre-test recycled professionals all they want with their corporate competency models and instantly miss true character. A business willing to look at a recycled individual will more likely find genuineness and loyalty.
HR should accept that an increasing population of professionals have career blips, the gap, the weird job, the time of re-imagining all of which bring wisdom that no business school can instill. Character is not taught; it is lived and tested while under pressure. Act 1 always precedes Act 2. We are watching yet another "Great" workforce purge awaiting to learn the final label that will stick as the AI industry hallucinates for the entire world how progressive and wonderful it will be to not have a job.
I'd much prefer to work alongside people of strong character who have already fought against the mad world.
Robert Waters, 2016, (v.2 2020), (v.3 2026)