Time magazine first sounded the alarm in 1961.
Dr. Russell Ackoff, a Case Institute expert on business problems, feels that automation is reaching into so many fields so fast that it has become “the nation’s second most important problem.”
The Automation Jobless, Time Magazine, Feb 24, 1961
This was 1961, and even in 1961, they called automation an “old scare word.” Sound familiar?
Now it’s 2023, and automation is still putting you out of work.
You may not get fired and directly replaced with a robot that looks like the best version of you (trim, great night of sleep, hair on point) but does your job better, faster, and cheaper.
Instead, automation may be a bit passive-aggressive about it. Weasling its way into your career from the side door. For example, you may find it harder or impossible to get that next job. Or maybe your salary flattens or declines as your leverage disappears.
So what can you and I do with that? How can we win that battle? How can we be relevant?
First, let’s not try to win any battles with automation on its home turf. Just concede. If a machine can do your job better, let it. Why compete in a game we cannot win? Let’s compete on a different plane.
Second, here is the opportunity to lean into our relevance. How? By leaning into our humanity. Humans feel. Humans connect the dots. Humans define meaning and intent.
Your humanity is a feature, not a bug.
