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Why I can't Sleep
It's Friday April 14th at 2:54 AM. The last exam I took was
October 10th of last year. I haven't exactly been making any
progress towards my degree. It got me thinking, I wonder how many
other people gear up to accomplish something only to let time pass them
by without making any progress. I want a degree. It's on my
new years resolutions. Or is it? Yep, it's right here on my
refrigerator.
So life happened. That's my excuse. Life sent me this way
and that way and there was almost nothing I could do about it. If
you're like me then perhaps life just happened to you too. And
there was almost nothing you could do about it either.
The cold hard facts are these. Fact number one: the job
market is going global. Have you noticed how the news has changed
from how many people we are importing to fill vacant jobs in the USA,
to how many vacated jobs there are in the USA because the job was
exported overseas? It's not just programming either.
Engineering, architecture, law, customer service, you name it.
Someone has either exported it already or is working on a way to do
it. They will be flipping our hamburgers in India before we know
it. Only if we don't do something we won't be able to buy them.
Fact number two: there is not a damn thing you can do about jobs going
over seas. There is no way to stop it. Politicians maybe
able to slow it down a bit but so long as Hasaan makes $11,000 a year
to do what they used to pay me $70,000 a year for, Mr. and Mrs.
business person are going to find a way to cut the $60 grand out of my
equation. The fact is, Hasaan is every bit as qualified as I
am. And he's very likely a tad bit more grateful.
Fact number three: there are only two ways for me to stay fully
employed and avoid a life of Top Ramen and $1.50 Mac'N'Cheeze. I
either need to improve my skills or innovate.
Innovation is that entrepreneurial spirit that drives this
country. I encourage everyone to have a side project going at all
times. But in the mean time we have bills to pay! Paying
bills in more often accomplished by advancing one's skill set. No
longer are the days when 16+ years of school was enough. Welcome
to the down side of the information age. From now on until you
retire consider yourself in school. Yes, there will be recess
from time to time and occasional summer breaks. But you and I and
Hasaan are all in a competition. And there's not one good reason
why Hasaan can't win.
You know it's true. Uncle Sam is not going to give us the same
subsidies that he gives farmers.
So, like they say on the playgrounds of New York: So what'cha gonna do
bout it?
I'm going to go study.
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