The oldest tools that can be shown to have been made by “humans” have been dated to 3.3million years old. Our species, Homo Sapiens has existed for around 300,000 years. We therefore have evidence that our species has been manufacturing things for at least 300,000 years, and it is reasonable to assume that at the same time as people were manufacturing things others would be providing some services. The Industrial Revolution where we started using factories and offices for most goods and services came along in the mid 1700’s in much of the UK and even later in many countries. we have, therefore, been organising work in the current way for only about 300 years. To put that into perspective that’s less than 0.1% of human history. If you currently work in, or are in some way attached to a factory or office then the way you work is not normal. For 99.9% of our history we have not worked in the way we do today.
Why is this important?
We are currently going through one of the biggest work revolutions the world has ever seen. A.I. is moving at an unprecedented pace and the assumption that the economic powerhouse of the world will be in the West is being successfully challenged. Despite this, the majority of people with whom I speak still look to improve the productivity of the factory and / or the office or themselves in order to achieve output in a way that anyone in the 18th century would be familiar, but nobody in the 17th century would. The Industrial Revolution in the UK took between 50 and 100 years to change everything. The current revolution will probably take less than 10, and yet very few people are addressing the situation, and even less are effectively changing the way they do things in order to benefit from the changes.
What Should We Be Doing?
First, we should take the biggest lesson from the last Industrial Revolution – the past is no guide to the future. Many businesses, trades and professions that have previously profited from the status quo of the last 300 years will be wiped out in an incredibly short period of time in the same way that home weaving and so many other things disappeared with the advent of machinery and the factory. What we consider to be normality will not return because it was never normal in the first place. Effective people and businesses will be looking forward with a clean piece of paper.
Second, accept that the new “normal” is here and we need to not only live with it but accept it and, if we are to benefit from it, use it to our advantage. We already see a small number of people becoming “digital nomads” and carrying on successful businesses that are not tied to any specific location. This is not just true for services. With the advent of A.I. additive layer printing and many other techniques all manufacturing does not have to be in a factory any more. Yesterday I had to order a simple part for our washing machine which will have been produced in a factory (probably in the Far East) but if I had a half decent 3D printer at home the “manufacturer” could just have sent me the file and the place of production would have switched to my living room. The future is here and it does not look anything like the past.
Third, and possibly the most important one. Embrace the change, don’t fight it. You won’t win. Looked at effectively, this is an opportunity.
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