Robert Kiyosaki used to say that if everybody is talking about
getting the same stock, then itís already too late to make a
killing. The same can be said about people and their place in
life. If people talked and acted just like everybody else, then
they are not taken seriously by those who matter.
Why, you say? Because he is not unique. And he does not have
what is needed, or valued. It may be a skill, a personality, a
way of life, a possession. If a person does not make the effort
to make himself significantly more valuable from the rest of the
madding crowd, then he is flying beneathe the radar. He is left
unnoticed, forgotten and ignored.
Nature has made sure of this even in the animal kingdom. Darwin
observed that male animals that strongly and aggressively
asserted themselves, competed and overwhelmed their adversaries,
gets to mate with the females in the pack or herd. These males
that won are called alphas. The rest of the males are either
driven from the pack or relegated to beta (secondary) status
males. Winner takes all.
Though we homo sapiens do not have to worry about getting
physically killed off by our competition, we might as well have
been annihilated. We get virtually killed all the time. In work,
in the family, with our friends, getting a date, at the grocery
line, at the fastfood counters. If you feel that getting cut off
by another car gets you really angry, itís because you felt
defeated by another for real estate you want, namely that
parking space.
This is a bit of an exaggeration, but it makes a simple point:
If you are not making yourself special, nobody else will want to
do it for you.
Now focus on where modern man makes his presence felt: the
workplace. Yes sir. The new battlefield is inside corporate,
government, and office buildings. You can see the blood flowing
from those cubicles.
The dawn of the Industrial Revolution steamrollered over the
skills of most craftsmen and made everybody with two hands work
to the tune of the same drummer. Living standards went up,
people had more money, more food, more wonderful gadgets. And
for what price? Everybody had to conform.
Now things have turned full circle. The Information Age requires
people who are specialized at something. A talent, a skill,
contacts, or possessions. Gone are the days when conforming isa
good survival tactic. More and more menial jobs are being
relegated to software and machines. Many ordinary peopleís
livelihoods are in danger. The only way out is to now be unique.
Alvin Toffler mentioned that the problem isnít that there arenít
any jobs to fill, but there are not enough people to fill the
jobs with. Take a million job openings and advertise, but if the
applicants have little to no skills to qualify, then the
exercise is moot and academic. Conversely, it is even more
difficult to replace a specialist than before because the
skillsets being utilized more or less isnít the only thing
required to be successful.
The Age of Information also shows that skills become obsolete at
an even faster pace due to the introduction of even newer and
better technology and skills. Realizing this, more and more
executives and staff in corporations have made an effort to take
higher or vocational education to move up the corporate ladder
or out of it. Some have taken to entrepreneurship, engaging in
commerce, manufacturing, and services. Others have shifted to
another field altogether.
Other strategies include migrating to countries with a shortage
of some labor skillsets, taking opportunities offered by
countries with incentives, or entering zones of danger in the
hopes of being one of the few willing to brave the dangers for a
higher sum of money.
The old anecdote of death and taxes being only the sure things
in the world need to be updated. Death, taxes, and an
ever-increasing cycle of Change. Like Darwinís theory, man as a
survivor and as a competitor for scarce resources must adapt. He
must use all his wits and resources at his command to win, or
perish.
So a word of advice. It doesnít have to be new, it doesnít even
have to be spectacular. But it has to be uniquely yours and you
better try hard to find a way to make your skill valued in the
city you live in. Or perish into obscurity.
About the author:
Daegan Smith the owner of
Net MLM Articles and the leader of the fastest growing team
of successful home business enterpernuers on the net. Find out
how we're creating financial freedom all across the globe and
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http://www.comlev.com