Finding A New Career In Another World

"1843" April/May 2017

I am often asked about the impact of automation on the jobs market. The fear that is expressed to me is that, with advances in robotics and AI, there will be a certain degree of displacement as people are replaced with machines. Historically, this has proven to be an unwarranted fear because new occupations and careers arise to absorb the labour displaced by new technologies. I am told that this time is different, and that we need novel solutions such as a Universal Basic Income, to solve this problem. I am fairly unconvinced by this line of thought, but, to date, I have very few examples to hand of the process I am describing.

It would appear that someone has given me a subscription to 1843 - the lifestyle magazine from The Economist stable. Normally, I don't pay much attention to the magazine, but one article in the current edition did catch my eye. Entitled "Escape To Another World"*, it tells a tale of young people today. Apparently, young people today are over-qualified, under-employed, under-valued, and underpaid. They tend to have minimal consumption aspirations, live with their parents, and haven't really started to build a life. From the perspective of an older generation, this might be true. However, it is also worth looking at this differently, from the perspective of the young people.

The rejection of the lifestyles of an older generation is nothing new. However, in order to do so successfully, the younger generation has to determine how it wants to live. What I find interesting is that work is now seen as the servant rather than the master, and this plays out in a number of ways. The way it plays out in terms of this article is to develop a new career stream - professional gaming.

The concept of gaming as a profession is at its formative stage. A number of enterprising young people have found ways of monetising their activity. For example, the companies that develop games pay gamers to showcase their games through a You Tube channel. As the article notes, the gaming public are more likely to buy a game if they have seen it successfully played beforehand. Many professional gamers use their channel to link through to marketplaces where various products can be bought, and earn a referral fee through an associates programme. Those who achieve a modicum of stardom have even monetised the sale of their own branded merchandise.

How can a depressed, demotivated, young person get by? They can make money through social media. This might not be a 'real' job in terms of their parents, but on their own terms, they are earning enough to get by. The article makes a fair point that there is a difference between earning pocket money and earning enough to fully participate in society. However, this career opportunity is at its early stages and some young people are earning enough money to buy houses and commence household formation. This is a trend that is only set to continue.

In some respects the article is absolutely correct. We ought to be concerned at the extent to which young people are attracted to the world of gaming if we want current work patterns and aspirations to continue. However, as that world is currently not working for the young people, and society is not providing the means for them to participate in that world, ought we to be surprised when the young people redefine their lifestyle to find one that does suit them? In my view we are seeing a new career in the making, in just the way that pilates instructors, image consultants, and Feng Shui advisers, came out of the last major bout of labour displacement in the 1990s. This is Schumpeter's creative destruction in action.

In future, when I am asked how people will earn a living when they are replaced with a machine, I will answer that they will play games all day and get paid for it!

Stephen Aguilar-Millan

© The European Futures Observatory 2017

* The article referred to can be found at: https://www.1843magazine.com/features/escape-to-another-world