Enter futurist and author Craig Rispin, who believes the integration of our digital, physical and biological worlds actually heralds immense opportunities.
"We've all read the stories about the billions of jobs that will be transformed or eliminated in the next 10-15 years," Craig says. "It's already happening - from checkout operators in supermarkets to bank tellers; we eliminate jobs all the time. But it is a net positive because we are also creating jobs that didn't formerly exist. The world is becoming more complex all the time."
Craig cites the explosion in start-ups as an indicator of the possibilities ahead.
"We are seeing thousands of start-ups leveraging the shift to the Fourth Industrial Revolution, but also major existing businesses following their lead," he says. "The start-ups are asking what's out there right now that I can add artificial intelligence to? What can I add blockchain to? How can I use augmented reality in new sectors?"
Anyone with an eye to future job security needs to prepare for different futures - what Craig calls scenario planning. "You can't ignore the future," he says.
You need to become a visionary yourself, and prepare and equip yourself for the changes ahead. This is not just relevant to young people, but also those who want to change jobs and retrain. You need alternative career pathways.
"You can't keep doing what you are doing and survive into the future. You always have to be learning and reinventing yourself; that's the law of the world now. Futurists that I have been taught by started talking about these changes in 1966 and here we are still talking about it. The difference is that change is occurring so much faster.
"What used to be a really senior job paying more than $160,000 - a systems, applications and products (SAP) specialist - is now an entry-level job. People are so used to using cloud products, you don't need years of experience, and in the space of seven years the pay for this position has dropped to $60,000.
"But we are also seeing the creation of new software tools all the time, and those tools being used by multiple companies, and somebody needs to be an expert in the use of those tools."
Craig's key advice to future-proof your livelihood:
- become a visionary yourself;
- study the emerging trends to get ideas on the jobs of the future;
- back up your decisions with data - the LinkedIn 2018 Jobs Report has the big data on jobs and those that are growing the fastest;
- scenario plan and have alternatives on where your experience can take you; and
- ensure your training or degree can apply to multiple career paths.
"The bottom line is that you have to keep updating your skills and making an informed bet on the future, that whatever you are studying can be applied to multiple industries or jobs," Craig says.
* Craig presented this morning at UNE Sydney in Parramatta, with the support of the Parramatta Chamber of Commerce.
