Are Traditional Jobs Overrated?

A Time Like Never Before

For most millennials, the job market of today is drastically different than that of those born in any other decade. There are career options today that simply didn’t exist as early as five years ago- this is common knowledge. Most millennials would happily toss traditional jobs out of the window to embrace new and exciting ones, but the very aspects that make emerging jobs appealing might also be the reason to maintain caution. Traditional or new-age, both paths can lead to success and one may not be better than the other.

Traditional vs. New Age

In every industry traditional jobs co exist with their newer, cooler counterparts with enough room for each to grow without threatening the other. For example, in the field of medicine there are doctors, surgeons and therapists that study and train for years before they begin working independently.  For a long time, these were the only people that made up the majority of the medical industry.  Now there are app creators and engineers, who may not have extensive medical backgrounds but are still able to create products that will impact the industry.

Apps like Medisafe, Micromedex and PillPack among many others have helped patients immensely. They were all born of a need to help make the lives of patients more convenient. Not only do these apps increase jobs in the medical fraternity, but also they fill a gap in the market. Unlike doctors, these apps aid patients rather than treat them.

For a long time, if a person wanted to work in medicine, the only way to enter that field was to get a medical school degree. Now entry to the field is possible even with a software or business degree.

Consider the world of comedy in Mumbai, we have seasoned ace comedians like Paresh Rawal and Johnny Lever who are household names today, but it took them years to earn the recognition. In comparison lots of new age comedians are on their way to become household names, using YouTube as the stage to showcase their talent. Perhaps if they work consistently and long enough, they will be able to achieve a similar type of success in far less time.

The barriers to entry in each industry seem to reduce with technological advancement, making it possible for more talent to come to the forefront.

What You Can Be Sure Of

Here is what is true of traditional jobs, once you set foot into the door its likely you will reach somewhere good. If you make it through college, there will be a degree. If you get accepted to a medical school to be a doctor and stick it out, you will become a doctor. Maybe a bad one, but the M.D on your letterbox is guaranteed. The creators of the many successful apps in this same field don’t have that same comfort, they are almost always unsure of their success.

Even though most people view traditional jobs as less exciting and sometimes even downright boring, it can’t be denied that there are advantages attached to traditional jobs that are just absent from new-age ones.

Its Tough Out There

Making is really difficult. Traditional job or not, salary structure is oftentimes independent of qualification. While a college degree does raise the chances of finding a job it cannot guarantee a high paying job; while dropping out of college may drop your chances of finding a job it can also create the possibility of having Zuckerburg type success and the chance to tell your grand kids a pretty incredible story.

The Desk Job

Three words that seem almost as lifeless as a wooden desk with compass marks engraved on the edges. Perhaps the desk has a bad reputation because desks evoke memories of schooldays, long endless days spent looking at the ticking clock to hear the bell that would indicate freedom.

But desks are also reminiscent of first crushes, laughter and friendships. Most traditional jobs are sometimes referred to as desk jobs, but they are not necessarily as dull as they are made out to be.

A vast variety of important people have to, at some point, sit at a desk and get the job done. The Prime Minster, a scriptwriter, a schoolteacher, a lawyer and so many others start their workdays on a desk. Even a movie director must at some point sit at a table with a producer to prepare for a seat-filling blockbuster.  So are all desk jobs really that dull?

A standard office job that requires PowerPoint presentations and excel sheets may seem undesirable and reminiscent of a never-ending school day, but these are the jobs that are hold up the economy of the nation.

Every office environment will have its own unique character; friendships may be formed between people of different backgrounds, relationships that would force HR personnel to take a Saradon tablet or two. There are some friendships born in the workplace that just wouldn’t exist in any other setting.

Safety Net

Financial independence is the key factor to finding a job. Money is required for the serious things in life like bills, rent, education, healthcare and money is also required for the essential things in life like eating at cafes, travelling, buying books and drinks with friends. For all these expenses and so much more a steady paycheck can be handy. Sure, at times most traditional jobs can seem to reach a stagnation or a dead end, and in comparison most new age jobs due to their unprecedented nature can offer more income at a faster pace, that is exciting.

Whatever path you may be on, a college professor or a wildlife photographer, desk or no desk, 9 to 5 or freelance, either way there will be pros and cons. Depending on how you feel about Dolly Parton, traditional jobs may or may not be the way to make living’, but if you show up and do the job well there could be a success story, just pour yourself a cup of ambition.

Sources:

1. Medisafe info: https://medisafe.com/company/
2. Best medical apps to consider: https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/best-medical-apps/
3. * lyrics : Dolly Parton, 9 to 5