How to Succeed as a Millennial in a Technologically Driven World
Borders have eroded and the world has shrunk, the maxim of it being small has become even more pertinent due to the rise of technology and platforms that encircle the globe. You can skype your cousin in Manilla, while whatsapping your parents in Europe as you see pictures of your friends safari in Africa on Instagram.
To succeed in the new world we require a more diverse and generalised skillset. We all have our specialities and the thing we excel at but to succeed we must augment our current limitations by appending new competencies to our knowledge base.
The rise of technology brings the democratisation of information. This precipitates massive disruption to professions. Doctors, lawyers, architects, teachers, management consultants etc. are in the eye of the storm. Automation is going to alter the paradigm. There will be a growing emphasis on being able to learn, develop and adapt rapidly as new roles and tasks arise. You need to become agile and constantly evolve: you’re learning must never stop. Exploit the availability of information and acquire the requisite skills to succeed.
But it’s not just about skills, it’s about strategy and technique. Begin cultivating a brand immediately; it is the essential pre-requisite which affords you the serendipity of chance. It’s more than luck though; it’s a definitive choice to embrace the world of possibility. It’s about giving yourself an opportunity in a world fraught with distraction. The modern world has made it even harder, At no point in human history has it been so easy to be seduced by distraction. 3 hours can evaporate as easily as unlocking your smartphone.
This affords opportunity. By training yourself to do something when others are perpetually in a state of inaction, seduced by the allure of technology, gives you a chance to progress and cultivate something of value. Taking those first steps, unshackling from the burden of modern distraction, are what is required to begin the journey. If you can utilise your time more efficiently, understand that world we operate in, see the historical precedent and project the likely future, you can add massive value to the world.
It’s a process. It’s about birthing the version of yourself that you want the world to see and interact with. It’s about choosing methods which accentuate your own capability and advertise your potential. It’s easy to transiently meander through life, it’s hard to stand for something and actively pursue it — but only by doing so do you have the chance to achieve something of significance. The world needs people willing to become adept at solving hard problems.
You need to create content for other people to consume, be that ideas, products or services. Share your ideas, invite collaboration, connect with people and understand evolution. The beauty of technology and an interconnected online world is the way in which your influence can grow. Creation is the thing which sets you on a voyage of discovery. That discovery involves other people stumbling upon your content by chance or you finding people who you think may be interested and reaching out.
And solving hard problems is where the most value can be added. There’s nothing easy about solving hard problems, there are no shortcuts, it makes fund raising more difficult, and is less likely to succeed. As entrepreneurs many people are driven to solve their personal issues right in front of them, which leads a disproportionate number of founders to focus on: music, bars, restaurants, photos, etc.
And there is nothing wrong with that.
But hard problem are where the biggest difference can be made. People’s perception of hard problem differs from person to person but in mind they can be characterised by the below:
Health: Eradication of disease
Education: Indistinguishable disparity in global quality & lifelong learning
Aging: Implications of more people living longer, health and economic
Community: Or lack thereof, bringing people together.
Jobs: That are worthwhile and subsist living
AI & Automation: Defensibility, quality of living, disruption.
To succeed we can provide leadership in the above. We can leave a lasting legacy having significantly improved the lives of a massive volume of people.
We live in a world that is moulded by the actions of people. We cultivate land, alter townscapes and change the face of nature everywhere we go but the impact we have on the environment pales in comparison to the effect our actions have on people. Schools were created by humans enabling the expansions of our capabilities. Hospitals were born from a desire to improve health. Both are human inventions which effect every moment of our lives from birth to grave and we can create new things that do similar.
Life challenges you to make a difference. It inserts obstacles in your path in the form of distractions which divert you from the opportunity you have been afforded. Every day you are given a fresh 24 hours to improve your life, and potentially other peoples as well.
If something doesn’t work change it, if it doesn’t exist create it, if it hasn’t happened do it.
It is your choice whether you grasp your chance and succeed or dissolve into the obscure homogeneity of life.
Time’s ticking.
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