What Kind of Job are you Looking For?
I had coffee the other day in Laguna Beach with a very smart person. I am grateful that I live close to Laguna.
When I was going to college in Canada I sat on a beach in Laguna and said I want to live here. I wanted a piece of paradise. It was pretty much out of reach. I had every obstacle in the world to make that happen including my brain and life’s reality. I have had three meetings at the Starbucks in Laguna this week looking at the beach networking with people. My experience is testimony that dreams are achievable.
My new friend used to work in publishing which is an industry that has changed drastically in the New Normal. I attended a Business Wire breakfast recently that featured a panel of local press reporters. They work at places where half the seats are empty. I am sure that the cubes are dusty and the company meetings less exciting.
This has happened to many industries. I am an Ad Guy. My former job in the corporate world doesn’t exist anymore so I had to create one for the New Normal. That wasn’t exactly easy. Lots of businesses have changed. When is the last time you booked a trip through a travel agent or taken a roll of film to be developed? When is the last time your kids read a newspaper? Do your kids own a watch? When is the last time you weren’t multi tasking and just thinking about nothing for an hour? They are planting farms in intercity Detroit. The world is changing. The secret is to change before it changes you. To go to the places you want to go before anybody else gets there. That always isn’t easy.
I asked my new friend what kind of job they were looking for and they looked at me and said “I don’t know.” That stopped me for a moment. It sounded like I am looking for a job that doesn’t exist. I have heard that before. There are many people looking for the path of clarity. I know my new friend will figure it out because of their skills and experience but I thought of the many people that aren’t as gifted as them.
The key to survival in the New Normal is a very broad horizontal and not vertical network. Like a traffic circle this will give you more opportunities for an exit to a new future.
The train of change will continue to come down the track very quickly in the New Normal. You just have to make sure you are in the Locomotive instead of the Caboose.
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