Jeff Bezos, the richest man in the world said he frequently gets asked the question: “what’s going to change in the next 10 years?” However, he almost never gets asked the question: “what’s NOT going to change in the next 10 years?”
All over the internet – including on this channel – there are videos and articles about how the world is going to change in the next 10 years; how different professions will be disrupted and many people will lose their jobs. But rarely does anyone talk about or ask question about what is not going to change.
Why is asking what is not going to change more important than asking what is going to change?
The simple answer is because you can build a long term business or career strategy around the things that are predictable over a long period of time. When you have something that you know will remain true over the long term, you can afford to put a lot of energy and resources into it.
For Amazon, that thing is the fact that people will always want cheaper products; people will always appreciate better customer service; and people will always want faster delivery of items they order.
People will never get fed up of getting quality items at cheaper price. No one gets tired of being treated with care as a customer. And no one wants to order an item and have it delivered late. These things are not going to change. So Bezos built Amazon concentrating on how to lower prices, offer better customer experience and increase speed of delivery.
You may not be happy with how the company runs its business, but we can agree that the strategy of focusing on what is not going to change worked for Amazon. If nothing, it grew the company to become the most valuable company in the world and made Bezos the richest man alive.
So what are some of those things that will not change over the next 10 years; and how can you capitalize on them to build your career or business? Before we get to it, I’ll like to invite you to subscribe to After School TV and click the notification bell to get notified when we publish more insightful videos like this.
At the core of what is not going to change over the next 10 years is human nature. Technology will continue to evolve. Professions will continue to evolve; and some will even become obsolete. Industries will continue to be disrupted. But we will always stop to listen to the end of an interesting story; we will continue to measure and compare ourselves with our neighbors; we will always think about ourselves first; and we will continue to desire being treated specially and exclusively.
Everything else is subject to change, but core human nature will remain fairly predictable. And considering the amount of data that is generated with our unending interaction with technology, our behavior will be increasingly more predictable.
That is why, the skills of the 21st century focuses on ability to understand and relate with other human beings; skills like communication, empathy, and negotiation. It’s also why professions like Data Science and Data Analytics are considered one of the most high demand professions of the future.
Those who understand how to deal with other people on individual and collective level will be most prepared for the future; and no level of technology advancement in future will change that.
Jeff Bezos didn’t say anything about technology or industries when he talked about the things that will not change. The focus was on what will continue to be relevant to people regardless of what the world will look like in the next 10 years.
No one can accurately predict the future. And you cannot claim to be prepared for a future you are not so sure of. But, by developing skills that allow you to succeed with other human beings, you are positioned to thrive in whatever the future may look like in the next 10 years.
Here are some things to keep in mind;
The media and negativity
Nothing is more important to a human being than survival. Our brain is highly attentive to anything that could potentially harm us. The news media understands this and does a good job of feeding the masses negative news. The consequence is that people will continue to be generally pessimistic. Hence, those people who develop the ability to remain positive, and choose to see opportunities in the mist of the chaos will continue to have an edge.
You will still be responsible for your life
10 years from now, you will still be responsible for your life. Life is not going to get better in future if you don’t take responsibility for your life today. The government wouldn’t have built a world where the need of everyone is taken care of by default. People will still need to be courageous to deal with issues of life. So the earlier you take full responsibility for your life the better your future will be.
Creativity and innovation will continue to be attractive
Several scientific studies have shown that people lose their ability to be creative as they grow through the society and the formal education system. This leaves adult with the responsibility to rekindle what is left in their creative vessel; because creativity and innovation will continue to be in high demand.
Those who succeed at preserving or rekindling their ability to be creative and to innovate will continue to be attractive and to point everyone else in the direction to go.
The simple message of this video is this; if you want to create something that have long-term value – whether a business or a career – do not focus on trend or technology. Focus on people.
The leaders and the rich of the future are not just thinking about what is going to change; they are building their strategy around the things that they know is likely to remain the same. So whether you are building a career or a business; whether you have a technical background or not, if you want to build something of long term value, focus on the core of what it means to be human and you have a chance to touch people not just today, but tomorrow too.
Technology tools will come and go. YouTube may not be the most popular video streaming platform in the next 10 years; Facebook may not be the most popular social media platform then. A lot of these things may change in ways we never thought possible. But if your strategy is focused on people, you’ll have skills that you can easily move around regardless of what change brings. If you are yet to subscribe to After School TV, now is a good time to hit the subscribe button. Until next time, YOUR SUCCESS MATTERS!
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