Will a robot take my job?

There are lots of powerful emotions surrounding the topic of jobs, work...and the effect that technology will have on who (or what) gets appointed to do them / it.

One of the big questions that many are grappling with is: "Will a robot take my job?"

To think about this question clearly, it's perhaps best to broaden it a bit and try to find patterns, outside of the narrowness of the specific question itself, for evidence to support a more reassuring conclusion.

So let's start by being super honest with ourselves and the reality of economics.

Jobs...or work...in most cases exists within commercial businesses whose primary concern is shareholder return. Businesses don't exist to provide employment to people. They are not in business to look after anyone (no matter what the silly values poster in the foyer says).

Your manager doesn't care about you.

Your company doesn't actually care about you.

The only thing a company cares about is making money for investors.

This realisation might be hard to accept, but it's really time to be honest with yourself - grow up for a second - and call it as it is. 

Nothing is sacred. If a buck can be saved...it will be saved.

So the reality is that if a choice exists that will allow a business to produce the same output at a lower cost - they will take it.

The patterns are there as proof BTW.

• When covid-19 hit a few years ago - businesses retrenched people.
• When manufacturing was made more affordable by Chinese supply chains - businesses moved manufacturing to China.

You can therefore be 100% assured that when a robot is able to do your work, as well as you do it, at a lower overall cost to the company - you will lose your job.

(BTW - on a side note - getting rid of people is just a dream for most managers. No more having to listen to their whining about performance appraisals, signing 'leave forms', trying to mediate arguments about WFH-days and parking and all of the other headaches that people bring with them. A robot never gets sick, They don't need go on holiday or have mental health issues. They don't need bonuses to keep them motivated. BLISS.)

So to put your mind at ease right now - the answer is 'yes'. At some point (probably soon) technology will do the work that you are currently doing.

What should you do now?

Well, luckily for you there are lots of options available.

Not only has new technology given companies many more options to optimise their operations; these choices are also affordable and available to everyone.

Today - anyone can start a successful business from a spare room. All you need is access to the Internet and a good strategy and you can be in business for yourself.

The worst thing that you could do right now is hand the direction of your future over to a company who has very little regard, or empathy, for you as a person.

Offering your skills and talent and energy exclusively to just one company (through an employment contract) who then also has the power to terminate the use of your services in an instant, is a dated and dangerous idea.

In years to come, we will laugh at the idea of 'jobs' and 'permanent employment'.

If your child starts using this kind of old-school terminology you should stop them immediately and set their mindset straight.

Purposefully choosing to have 'a job' in an organisation is not a good idea (unless you like the feeling of disempowerment).

You can choose a far better path - one where you take control and have the agency to make choices that are better for you. Having a job ain't it, and actually the fact that a robot will take your job is the perfect reason to give yourself permission to forge your own vision of the future.

So then the good news is that your path from here on can be yours to choose.

Or you can wait for somebody else to make that decision for you, but as is always the case...it's far better for you to be in control of your own destiny.