Learn -> Work -> Retirement
Society has this notion that jobs/careers are life-long. For example, If one wants to be a mechanical engineer, they will spend a chunk of time in their early life learning to be a mechanical engineer. Then, they will spend the rest of their life practicing their craft until retirement.
This model may have worked 60 years ago, probably due to a mixed bag of reasons such as lack of resources, need for specialization, lower expectations for human fulfillment 🐰 . but this model doesn’t seem to be ideal for our society now.
We have the infrastructure to support rapid sharing of knowledge. Learning resources are no longer exclusive to younger people, this means we can support multiple cycles of learning and executing.
Deciding what to do for the “rest of your life” in your late teen is extremely daunting, especially since our education system doesn’t support independent decision-making. I know many people who gave up their interest for traditionally sought-after careers because they are afraid of making a lifelong commitment to something that doesn’t guarantee stability.
The problem faced by our society is multi-faceted. We need individuals that are well-informed in many areas. We also need individuals who are great at learning, the best way to guarantee this is to make learning a habit.
This model kills innovation/ human agency. People get too comfortable when they think their career is meant to be lifelong.
Perhaps a new model of life should be this? Ie. may iterations of learning and executing, with the concept of retirement (taking a break/ relaxation/ do nothing and take in the beauty of life) being something that can take place any time in our life.
