In my professional life I asked a lot of questions of people
because they wanted help from me. I had to understand where they were coming
from before I could be of any help. I had to understand their situation if I
was going to bring new ideas or suggestions into their venue. Would they adopt
new ways of doing their work? Would this solve their problem? Would it clash
with their work culture and cause a totally different set of problems? Or would
it actually solve their problems?
Do we see the world around us clearly? Do we know how to
answer the known questions? Are we asking the right questions? Do we even know
enough to ask the right questions?
Our new technology challenges us to view everything from a
fresh perspective. It almost demands that we dump old assumptions. It dares us
to think of things in new ways, from scratch.
This may seem an insurmountable problem, but in fact, it may
be the best opportunity we have of understanding our immediate universe better
than ever before. We get a chance to put all the pieces together, and then add
newer ones as they are discovered and aggregated. At the same time we are able
to see where some old data doesn’t belong, is extraneous to the issue at hand,
and dump it. A distraction eliminated. No longer relevant.
What has been is prologue to the present. The present is
prologue to the future. And that we must begin now. But how?
Let me see if I can form some questions we ought to be
asking and seriously seek answers for:
- With new productivity gains the American labor force cannot be re-employed for their old jobs; they need to be hired to work new jobs; what jobs would those most likely be?
- What work needs to be done in our economy isn’t being done?
- How many of these are government jobs, how many are private sector, and how many are non-profit private sector? How can we motivate each sector to create the jobs? Do they need motivation?
- If these jobs are created, what credentials do successful applicants need? Are such credentials readily available within the available labor pool? If not, where can the credentials be earned/learned and at what cost in time and money?
- What
industries would be considered ‘cutting edge’ for the world? Is
- Energy: diminish oil as energy source; replace with new sources of energy
- Building materials that come from renewable resources without damaging the planet; new building material systems, even
- New technologies that reduce our human ecological footprint
- Education as process for lifelong development and career success
- Infrastructure replacement or rehabilitation; perhaps reinvention
- Other?
- How do we encourage these new industries to begin, take root and succeed?
- How do we help Americans see ourselves better, more honestly, and prepared for the future?
These are good questions to start with. They are
challenging. They don’t assume government is the answer. Neither are
corporations expected to take on the full load. But the questions do require personal
responsibility: accept the given; prepare for change; follow your dream by
developing it, educating yourself for it, taking action to achieve it.
Mindsets are important. If we expect someone to do something
for us, then we are letting ourselves off the hook. If we know we need to
respond to changing circumstances, then the responsibility is in our hands. To
succeed, however, our community needs to help ensure the needed resources are
available for us to work with. That is educational opportunity well suited for
society’s changing needs, and a sense of nurture for each of us. That’s a
social ingredient that pays strong dividends.
One thing is for certain. The questions stated above won’t
go away. They also won’t get answered until and unless individuals see the
personal need to do so. It is in their interest to find answers. Together we
can make quick work of them. And the benefits will be huge and shared.
One last question: When will we be ready to get to work?
When will you?
February 4, 2012
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