This week I was fortunate to be able to attend a conference about “the future of work”. I got to spend a few days in the windy city and hear ideas from some very interesting people like futurist Jerome Glenn. I came away thinking about things that I haven’t spent much time considering, like how robotics and artificial intelligence will change how humans work. My brain hurts! But in a good way.
One of the primary themes of the conference dealt with how organizations need to look at the work they do and deconstruct it; getting the more routine work done by robots/artificial intelligence and re-configuring the non-routine work for creative humans. This means that people will need to re-invent themselves and learn new skills to keep up.
This made me reflect on my own career, I’ve always said I’ve had the opportunity to try out several different careers under the comfort of one roof. I’ve dabbled in sales, project management, sourcing and human resources. And within human resources over the past 10+ years, I’ve had career changes every 2-3 years. (I happen to enjoy the change; I realize some people might not see this as a positive).
I realized that while at a slower pace, I’m also re-inventing myself personally. It took me a long time, but I’m making room for fitness and health in my life now. I’m focusing more on experiences with people I care about and less on material things. One thing that I have forced myself to do over the years is to try to learn new things. We are so lucky to be in an age where so much information in a variety of formats is available to us. Whether it’s reading or listening to a book or blog or podcast, or talking with someone who has ideas different from my own, I enjoy learning something new. I’m thankful for friends that have shared podcast ideas with me, and I’d like to pass along a few of my favorites.
The Minimalists Podcast
On Being with Krista Tippett
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