Monetization Playbook #67 —We tend to overestimate the effect of a technology in the short run and underestimate the effect in the long run.

A Career On The Railways?

M. Night Shyamalan's films are polarising. This 'Sixth Sense' delighted many but baffled everybody else.

Why was 'Unbreakable' so painstakingly slow but so wonderfully adept at nailing the a-ha ending?

In the rear mirror, everything invariably seems so apparent. But in real life–what you see is all there is.

'Life can only be understood backwards—but it must be lived forwards!'

Soren Kierkegaard 

Therefore, when choices arise, we cannot see into the future; consequently, we synthesize the past, theorize about the future, and hope.

We cannot imagine Joe Rogan asked his university career adviser about a podcasting job.

But we could presume that Mr. Beast may have discussed YouTube as a career option with his high school teacher. 

Such is the problem presented to many high-school and university undergrads–what next?

Employee number 10,000 at Google or Facebook will indeed be lucrative, but with 40-50% turnover in certain functions, even the lure of cash and a significant credential doesn't wholly satiate.

'First on the boat is captain'–was a well-worn term in my school days. But which boat? Which direction? Do I even want to be a captain?

For those that do want to steer the boat–here's a selection of new ships that emerged over the last two decades:

• Digital Marketer-2005

• Growth Hacker-2009

• Social Media Marketer-2010

• Data Scientist-2013

• Podcast Producer-2016

• Monetization Architect-2020

Would being a digital marketer be profitable even to this day. Hell yeah! Imagine being one of the pioneers in this field!

Possibilities emerge every year. Software-enabled, they represent the second and third-order pick-axe and shovel career-defining opportunities of an expanding metaverse railway system. 

Careers will be fluid. As new railways appear–blockchain, distributed ledgers, DeFi, Clubhouse, Tik Tok, e-commerce–new careers will emerge.

First drivers, then passengers, then service providers–all aboard!

We tend to overestimate the effect of a technology in the short run and underestimate the impact in the long run.

—Roy Amara: [Scientist, Researcher, Futurist: 1925-2007]

Looking for new railways–is the best career advice you could ever want!