The mid future promises to be tumultuous. Politics, society, technology, conflict, and the environment are each loaded with inflection points that all but ensure the next century will be a hard break from the last and will unfold in ways that cannot be foreseen.
All of us are members of systems that will experience severe shocks and possible destruction in this time period. New systems will form and fall. Our skills, relationships, and locations are all informed by the old ways of doing things. We will be forced to catch up & adapt to changes as they occur. Our adaptation to old systems will in some ways be a burden. Our several forms of capital accrued in the old systems will in some ways be a blessing.
The Boomers are on their way out. As a generation they have massive financial resources and little need to learn new skills. So long as they keep hold of their financial resources they will probably do okay.
Generation X will have more adaptation to do as the economy changes but their skills are mature and most are in their prime earning years. This cohort will need to hold on to what it has earned and avoid losing its ability to keep generating more.
Generation Y and Millennials are entering their prime earning years and trying to figure out home ownership & family formation. These cohorts will have to adapt to the coming changes in order to achieve basic human success.
Generation Z is starting to enter the college years and is faced with skill development decisions. Too many will follow the hollowed-out college path that has occupied the center of our cultural shrine since the 50s. Quite a few will adapt to the coming changes and come out ahead.
Generation Alpha is the newest generational cohort to enter the world stage. Some are entering the school system. Many are still being born. This generation will grow up knowing nothing else than the coming changes. If Millennials are internet natives, Alphas will be inflection natives.
Those of us with children want to prepare them for the world. The older children are fairly well set and have only a little while before they will leave the home. The younger ones have more runway and more opportunity to learn skills suited to this new world. It is our job as fathers to teach them.
What will they need to learn?
I cannot foresee events. The world could go any number of ways from here and most scenarios have very dissimilar end points. What we can see are trends and these trends can be harnessed with skill sets. Some trends work against each other so preparing to handle all of them gives children choices as they grow.
Additionally, some skills are timeless and will be valuable no matter what the world looks like.
This is the beginning of a series of articles describing skills that will help our children navigate & succeed in the changing world. I hope it will provide value to you.
Specific technical skills are beyond the scope of this series. I am an authority on only a few topics and technology changes so rapidly there is no point in bringing up topics that will soon be obsolete. The topics addressed will be general and intended as a starting point from which you can explore and personalize as you see fit. As a man and a writer for a men's site I will focus on skills for boys.
Before we get into my lists of skills, what skills do you see as important for children to start learning as the world changes?
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