I want to be the Queen!
Last year in September I tuned in to the television for hours to watch the funeral ceremony of Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. As we watched the events unfold, my four-year-old daughter flooded me with queries on what was going on. Who was the queen, why did she die, where will she be now, why so many people are on the road, and the unanswerable, “When will she be back from the dead?”
I tried to answer most of her questions that went on for as long as the procession. She then looked back at me to mention she intends to be the queen in the future. I accepted her decision and offered my complete support in her endeavor.
It wasn’t the first time my daughter mentioned what she would like to become when she grows up. Whenever she finds a new set of toys, a doctor’s or a kitchen set she chooses to be a doctor or a chef. If she sees a policeman on the road, then she is to be a cop. Right now she is sure of becoming a doctor and an artist.
If you are a parent or have kids at home, this would be a regular affair. Such is the curiosity of children that draws them to events and things around them. I remember having such thoughts as a teenager about aspiring to be those individuals whom we admire, respect, or maybe even fear.
The constant change of identity in children is pretty common. If you ask a child what are they passionate about or what’s their purpose in life, be ready for a long list of answers. But have you ever wondered how the list shrinks as we grow old?
The shrinking list of passions
If you had a long list of purposes you could pursue as a child, growing up as a teenager it would trim down to four or five. As you age further the choice would be two or three. When you get to your mid-thirties (sometimes earlier), there would be only one passion and purpose that you want to achieve. This is the passion and purpose you chase all your life.
Most of you by now would think about what’s wrong with such an approach. Why am I writing about it? After all our parents, grandparents, and their parents saw life in this manner. They were highly focused individuals (excluding a marginal group who dedicated their lives to drinking or gambling).
As we grow old, we must be clear of our purpose and vision in life, you would insinuate. What’s the use of a man if he is unclear on his calling?
It is a valid argument since much of this prevailed as a way of life. At least until the twentieth century. I have a different take on this for the VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous) world we live in now.
How do we plan our lives?
Consider the average human life span of seventy or even seventy-five years. We spend the first twenty-two to twenty-five years and get an academic degree. We do this by evaluating our skills, interests, and market conditions. If you are good with numbers and if the financial world is projected to grow then it makes sense for you to become an investment banker, accountant, or tax consultant. If you aren’t good with numbers but with people, you shall find your purpose and passion in jobs that require dealing with people. Maybe become an HR professional.
After choosing your purpose you get into fulfilling that aspect for the rest of your lives. For the next forty years or so, you will hustle, grow, stabilize your life, and maybe prosper. Then you look forward to the retirement years. In the forty years of work-life, the degree you earned at age twenty-two or twenty-five would meet the market demands.
If the industry is on a growth trajectory and is evolving you would need to align your skills to the market dynamics. You could take up a course or a skill enhancement program. The upskilling guarantees your utility and relevance in the market until the time you retire. A slight but manageable course correction, which you could undertake in the twentieth century or maybe even until now.
How technology is shifting the paradigm?
The forces that dominate the twenty-first century are technology, automation, artificial intelligence, augmented reality, and so on. Facebook changed its name to Meta to build the Metaverse and Web3. The move was to transit into the next platform of human connection, trade, and business. It invested more than 30 billion USD into the venture. On Web3, you can be a creator and sell your product and services directly to customers without depending on platforms like Amazon or eBay.
On Web3 you pay through blockchain and cryptos. Blockchain technology bypasses the traditional century-old systems of banking. If people adopt it, blockchain will displace the entire banking industry and jobs. Google and Tesla have developed auto-driven cars and are currently testing them. The technology will replace taxis, trucks, and all other road transport drivers. E-commerce giants too are working on creating automated inventory management warehouses which will make the supply chain staff redundant.
Microsoft’s recent introduction ChatGPT gives you the power to create any content, travel itinerary, project plan, images, and videos by typing keywords in its search bar. There are firms out there that can create music, images, and videos through artificial intelligence. There are artificially intelligent nurses, pharmacists, and even board members who take decisions for the company.
The skill and credibility you acquire to meet your sole purpose in life will vanish through Artificial Intelligence and automation. This is most likely to happen with the investments made by big tech companies. Now, what is your purpose if your skill has been taken away by a machine?
What must we do?
Even if you upskill yourself to deal with technological interventions, how many times would you be able to do so? Any extensively adopted technology or platform would change once in decades. Consider television, entertainment, communications, and so on. This is not the case now.
For instance, I mentioned the Metaverse earlier and the investments made, but many have not even heard of the term yet (when I check this in my workshop with employees or students). The investments made in the Metaverse have not promised the world they anticipated earlier. Now they say the entire Metaverse idea might be scrapped for something else!
Imagine you are working in an industry that matches your passion and purpose. Now you have been asked by your employer to upskill in the metaverse for prospects. You enrolled for an expensive certification and by the time you completed your certification, the metaverse is no longer relevant. What do you do now? The pace of change is not similar to what it was in the last century. How often will you upskill?
You would wonder if I am questioning the ideology of having a sole purpose in life based only on these technological interventions. No, I am not. Technology is driving the forces of the twenty-first century and the way we humans will lead our lives. The same occurred with our transition from hunter-gathers to farmers to manufacturing into the computing age. Every era marked a decisive change in our outlook toward life. Clinging onto the path of past ideologies can only be detrimental.
A renewed approach to the future
Upgrading only once in a career spanning forty years is a thing of the past. Today the world demands that you constantly learn and improve instead of depending on a degree you attained years ago. The shift, therefore, demands that you let go of a single purpose in life. Instead, be fluid in learning multiple things and become useful in those areas. A single vision, passion, or purpose is no longer considered valid or viable.
Why does this seem unimaginable or daunting to us humans?
Since childhood, we are shaped by the thoughts imparted by our ecosystem of families, relatives, friends, and mentors to choose a profession and stick with it. We constantly keep sharing our grand plan with the people around us and in the process make it our life mission to achieve that one purpose. We make a verbal commitment to ourselves. Organizational Psychologist and Author Adam Grant refers to this conditioning as ‘Identity Foreclosure.’
As children, we witness and dream of multiple possibilities. However, the curiosity and self-inquiry into our future are killed by parents, and well-wishers juxtaposing the question constantly of “What do you want to become when you grow old?” This puts us on the track of being that one person or chasing that one purpose that is etched into our minds and souls forever.
Instead, we must avoid raising this question to ourselves and our children on what they want to be and let them explore varied and multiple possibilities. The freedom opens us up to a growth mindset not fixating upon one single chore. In the uncertain times of technological advancements and for the future this certainly must be the alteration we must bring into our lives and especially into the lives of our children.
Industries today emphasize heavily on the Adaptability Quotient AQ of an individual rather than the Intelligence IQ or Emotional Quotient EQ. Adaptability grows by allowing people to choose from a range than fixate their minds on it. Research even proves that younger siblings become more creative than their elder ones as parents focus more on the first child and are easygoing with the second.
Data indicates the first child invariably lands themselves in conservative roles and positions in organizations while the younger ones turn out to be bold decision-makers or choose creative fields as a profession. They constantly challenge the status quo and look to improvise. Why not, therefore, adopt the second-child treatment for ourselves and our children?
In organizations with existing employees, we are better off cultivating a learning culture as compared to a profit culture. Profit cultures focus on the tried and tested. The tried and tested methods are harmful during phases of volatility and uncertainties. Learning cultures instead focus on testing the tried methods and reinventing new ones. The strategy needs you to alter and question the organizational purpose.
Employees who grew up in families that gave them the autonomy to choose their purpose adapt well to the changing market dynamics. They are more than willing to shed their image and blend into the new.
I fell for the age-old fallacy of asking my daughter in the initial years what she wanted to be when she grows up. Now I stop asking her. I hence decided, to let her be whoever she desires to be. Even if it’s the Queen!
About the writer
Roshan Shetty is an author, corporate coach, and consultant. He trains corporates on Leadership, Emotional Intelligence, Change Management, and Wellness.
His book Shift Left on Emotional Intelligence and skills required for the future is available on Amazon worldwide.
Learn more about his work at www.roshanshetty.com. Subscribe to his YouTube Channel, Roshan Shetty, for life hacks on well-being.
So deep and thoughtful Roshan. You took me to my childhood where I wanted to be a teacher after seeing authority and influence of my teachers at school ..later doctor after seeing my grandmother being treated by one after her surgery ..later singer after seeing Michael Jackson .. ISRO scientist when i was completing my graduation in polymer technology..pub owner after coming to Mumbai and started clubbing during my post graduation …
But you put it so finely . How the world has changed.. I liked the way you put the world demands that we need to constantly learn and enhance our skills instead of depending on a degree like old times we attained years ago . Really we must let go of a single purpose in life . Gone are those dayz I could say too after my experience and observation .
Hi Roshan, highly appreciate your insights about how technology is shifting the paradigm. Things are changing rapidly, and it’s essential to be aware of how these changes can impact our lives. Gone are the days of life-long security.
As we navigate the changing landscape of work and life, we must be proactive in seeking out new opportunities and creating our own paths. We must be willing to challenge the status quo, think creatively, and be open to new ideas. To prepare for the future, we must embrace lifelong learning and be willing to upskill ourselves regularly. It’s also essential to develop a growth mindset, where we see failures as opportunities to learn and grow, rather than as setbacks. “Redundancy, Growth-Mindset, Adaptability, and Flexibility” are the Key Takeaways from my end.