CHARLIE MUNGER
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Benjamin Franklin said, “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” It's the reason Warren Buffett (& other successful individuals) spends 80% of his time reading.
The irony is that the problem isn’t a lack of jobs. Rather, it’s a lack of people with the right skills and knowledge to fill the jobs.
But, unlike money, when you use knowledge or give it away, you don’t lose it. In fact, it’s the opposite. The more you give away knowledge, the more you remember it, connect it with other ideas, etc.
Knowledge is the new money. While goods and services are becoming demonetized and replaced by machines, knowledge is becoming increasingly valuable.
- Identify valuable knowledge at the right time. Things move fast.
- Learn and master that knowledge quickly. Take advantage of existing opportunities.
- Communicate the value of your skills to others.
- Convert knowledge into money and results. Get a better job, demand better fees, etc.
- Learn how to financially invest in learning to get the highest return. Find the right “portfolio” of books, online courses etc.
- Master the skill of learning how to learn.
The term coined by futurist Peter Diamandis is a process by which technology is rendering previously expensive products or services much cheaper — or even free.
It's mainly happening because we are moving hardware products to software. For example, the phone today has about $1M of applications from a decade ago.
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When we consider the future of work, there are two trends we should keep a note of. They are:
- Half-life of knowledge
- Law of increasing learning
It’s easier and faster than ever to become competent in a new skill. The quality of knowledge in every domain is improving and there is an abundance of free or affordable content from the world’s top experts in every medium you can think of.
Example: 13-year-old Michael Sayman taught himself how to code via Google. One of his mobile games became one of the top 100 apps in the world, beating out Starbucks and Yelp.
... to connect your work to a clear purpose or intention. The main reason we can’t find Flow at work is because our goals aren’t clear. Job crafting consists of looking at your job at multiple levels—task, relationships, identity—and adjusting each one to find more purpose.
For example, you could adjust your daily tasks to include more challenging ones. Deepen your relationships with people inside or outside your department. Or change your job title to be more aligned with what you see as your most important work.