When work reality shifts and skills must

There can be a good feeling about one's society, even if worried about world at large, where most people am sure are not walking about challenging others as to their contribution. And I think in general we suppose that as long as people are being productive in a way good for society that things are ok without knowing the details.

Then there can be the concerns about those we may fear are not pulling their own weight as the phrase goes while getting the benefits of social support. But also want those who really need help to get it, when have a healthy community in mind.

But what about those desperate to be productive who watched their world shift and the value of their skill-sets shift as well in a way that left them struggling? What do you do?

And a LOT of people faced recently and are facing those kinds of questions which can challenge your sense of self. How do you feel about your benefit to society? When the easy answer is to go back to school, or re-tool, or re-learn and find other things you can do that people value. Easy to type up in a sentence, but really think about living it.

For me feel gratified that skills of mine that in the past looked one way, now look another as I took touch typing in high school. Was in a class back in the 1980's that was mostly girls, as fewer males in my school were like me, valuing the need to have those skills. Will admit I knew I wanted to do computer programming. MUCH better to type up your code without having to look at the keys! But today if you want to do something like am attempting with this post, which is to communicate to people ideas you think are important, is useful to be able to type your thoughts rapidly, and accurately.

And also I was one of those kids who loved English grammar for some reason. The logic of it fascinated me, and now rely heavily on those skills, even as I test the limits of the rules I learned very well, or decide is cool to simply break those I do not think matter. If you read my writing you can see the evidence of grammar pushed to its limits often as I look to communicate best as I see it. But need to know the rules first! Knowing the rules lets you find the limits where thoughts can push against restrictions that would barrier them.

This post has taken about five minutes of my time so far, which is good! Time is valuable and in our time getting there faster is the way to keep ahead and not find yourself wondering where to go, or what do you need to learn now?

The rapid shifts brought about by technological change have stressed people in unique ways I believe and it's important for society in general to recognize that, and continue to value people still trying. There is a new area now, where despite your best efforts you can struggle to keep up in a world that pauses for no one.

And your society needs to support you in finding your way, for the good of that society.

And now am running out of time for this post! Ten minutes of my time and more editing, where can take days to fully edit but gist of it will remain the same.

What does it take to be able to type up a post here in about ten minutes?

Well I think it takes working at skills diligently that have been built up, but also represents a shift in skills to what seems more valued for what is available for me to use! Like being able to type up a post on a blog that can speak to people all over, as just a typical thing, in our modern world.


James Harris

New public self

Web does something interesting in that even if not on it, it can push your public self in ways not previously true. Like if I meet someone and ask a few questions: Like, are you on social media? Do you watch web video? How do you get your news?

If a person is not on social media, doesn't watch web video and gets their news from television then I feel like I know a lot about that person quickly. If they ARE on social media for instance though then I may just go look and see what public they have up!

That public person is the modern persona which is available 24 hours a day.

We have a new kind of public self.

Like it dawned on me recently that MOST people who know of me anywhere, probably know of me because of things I have public on the web, like here.

Sat and pondered that sentence for a bit as very different from world I was trained to face as a kid, as that world evolved into our modern one, and a public reality that is increasingly default, even in the null case.

You have a public persona in the modern world whether you like it or not, even if it is a null one driven by NOT being on the web as people can find that out too!

For me the public persona is fun. It intrigues me that people can literally spend days reading through things I've written and maybe learn a bit about me, if they wish. Choice rules. If they lack interest though is not a negative for me as I will not know either way for most regardless. I will not know what choice was made by most people who come across my content. That is the new public reality that is true for all. Is maybe weird though? Thought and pondered that for a bit too.

Trying to measure though is the web analytics problem which consumes many.

And people trying to figure out where your interest goes is defining the web, and pushing back into society, as can help figure out decisions that will be made, like how you might vote in an election, like the recent one here in the US.

The web has the unique ability to potentially have information readily available on every single person on planet Earth. That potential is driving so much whether you like it or not, consider it or not, or know of it or not.

Your public self will matter, even if is null from trying to stay off the web.

And there will be people who will learn about you whether you wish them to know anything or not. For instance for many it's as simple as web search, as web search will likely tell.

Thinking how you present in public will define you, as how you think? Will determine how you act. And your actions will define the behaviors others may notice.


James Harris

How will we work?

Considering what work is has intrigued me and in our times people have to ponder the question of automation and wonder what might be left for humans to do? And I was comforted to note that there was a time when most people did agriculture while now in major countries like my own few do. So huge shifts in how humans work have been ongoing for millennia.

And another huge one actually is about done as factories changed so much as our world industrialized and I think much of the idea of work as a horror came with factories as well. Sure farm work is hard, and can be difficult but the idea of dehumanizing labor, outside of slavery should add, I think really came with factories. And robots and automation are changing that story.

Took it for granted that our education system was long designed to create good factory workers. And the needs of the factory may have pushed more education for everyone, so should add that as well.

Now information technology is pushing for a different kind of worker in many areas, while many are also more likely to go into services.

In US manufacturing has approximately 10.3% of civilian employed over 16. Interesting. https://t.co/TPcOqY86tz

— James Harris (@jstevh) October 3, 2016

That reality of 10.3% of workforce over 16 in manufacturing in the US tells the tale I think, and so much was focused on factories, but reality now is few people work in them. And thankfully today here in this country at least such jobs are not the horrors they were in the past, when humans were treated like, well like machines.

Technology has transformed how humans work for a long time. But the one constant is that we work for each other.

I think what humans do for other humans is where focus should be, and in the past to feed each other was in agriculture, and later for a bit factories needed human effort. Now? Well we're figuring that out.

It is important to value human effort though. My own view based on my analysis of money as best thought of as a return for a favor where that favor is abstracted is that it is important to return that favor in equal exchange. The idea that businesses can cheat workers with less pay than deserved I think will go away, as a challenge to nations.

If you want your people employed? You can't let them be cheated as you discourage your workforce, limit your economy and in a world where information travels well, you are likely to be held accountable.

Wealthy individuals in the past could rely on gatekeepers to hide information for their benefit, while today the web zips information around with great facility.

And if your people find out they should be paid more, why should they like you?

The reality I think is that with the collapse of the factory system, and the growth in shared knowledge, we will do well in valuing what we do for each other.

Just like machines took over much of farm work and still have more to take, and are taking over factories, with a freeing of humans to do other things for each other, so will technological innovation stress more and more, giving value, so you can make that money for value returned.

Money facilitates commerce between strangers, helping us appreciate the input of others and think about how we can bring value to others. Sure it's had its problems lately, but with our species? Figuring things out is what we do.

Human beings seem to have a joy in figuring things out, which I think is so grand.


James Harris