U.S. News and World Report advises that if you want a “hot career,” you should become a registered nurse, software developer, or pharmacist. But they’re wrong. They are missing what America needs the most today, and will need even more tomorrow.
Which job will always be in demand, assure job satisfaction, impact the world, and may even make you rich?
To answer that question, look at the job market the same way an entrepreneur examines the commercial situation. Look for the biggest hole and then find the tools needed to fill it. Look around your workplace, look at your colleagues, and even at your bosses. What do you see?
The demise of leadership.
Leadership is a job
Sadly, people today, especially those just entering the workforce, lack the skills to lead their fellow workers. Having grown up in a society of entitlement, they learned that someone else is responsible for fixing every problem.
No job? The government should fix it. No health insurance? Other taxpayers should pay. Child fails in school? Blame the teacher. Declaring bankruptcy? It’s the bank’s fault for lending you the money.
The list goes on and on. We have a crisis of leadership because today’s young adults grew up in a society where they watched their parents blame others for every problem, and where they themselves never had to work hard. Without mentors and examples to lead the path of leadership, how will today’s youth grow into leaders?
What is a leader?
A leader is a dreamer. He must believe in himself and in others. He must love to teach and learn. He listens and speaks sparingly. He sets standards for himself and he values character. He’s a giver, not a taker.
The demise of leadership in the past 25 years has created fabulous job opportunities. Companies without visionary leaders will eventually fail. So don’t train yourself for a job qualification, because all you will do is work for one of the destined-to-fail firms. Rather, learn how to become a leader and you will find companies not looking to give you a job, but begging you to guide them.
Countless books have been written about how to become a leader. Others have been written about the benefits of having great leaders. Two of my favorites are Multipliers: How the Best Leaders Make Everyone Smarter by Liz Wiseman and Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap… And Others Don’t by Jim Collins.
I can tell you that as a financial adviser on Wall Street for over 20 years, I have witnessed the decline of quality leaders both in business and politics. If you can fill the shoes of the great men and women who led us in the previous generation, then you will change the world.
And that’s not a job. It’s a life.