This post is part of a series of posts covering the topic of personal Calling & Vocation.  You can find more about the entire series in the archive on the Vocation & Calling page. More on this here.  Summary: As a result of the Crisis of Employment, workers today are left with little confidence in their ability to do their jobs.  This is extended by the realities of life.  When you've worked for 40 years only to find retirement difficult to deal with, or you haven't reached your career goals, the confidence you need to do your job well evaporates. In recent history, the pinnacle of a person's employment was reaching the level of Master.  A Master of any craft was the best at what they did.  Because they had been working in the same craft their entire lives, this level was much more achievable than today. Today, we still strive for the level of Master.  Yet, as we near it in any particular career our lives are jolted by external change that kicks us back to the bottom of the ladder, where we must start again.  This creates a Crisis of Confidence. Response: How many people have you known that are having trouble planning for retirement?  How many people do you know that have had to start fresh in a new profession after the age of 40?  I know several, and I think most people know several as well.   While I agree that there is a lack of confidence in our workforce today, I believe that it can be prevented.  The prevention is something that isn't taught, but the possibility exists.  Do you know someone who is good at whatever they do?  They don't seem to lack the confidence to do their job.  Exactly.   To understand this, I think it is important to understand what we lack confidence in.  There two components to this.  The first area we lack confidence is centered on our fear of failure.  We fear that we will fail at the task we are given, or fail to perform to the expected standard.  Described in another way, we are simply afraid to fail.  The second area we lack of confidence in is knowledge.  Knowledge is what drives our economy today.  The person with the most knowledge can drive and direct their path in a confident way because they understand how to navigate the terrain of life.  Because the terrain changes very quickly, their skills of navigation are essential.  It is what sets them apart. Interestingly enough, the human fear of failure is as old as time itself.  We need to recognize this.  Overcoming our fear of failure is a gateway to greatness.  This greatness does not center on what we achieve, but what we tried.  Great men have spoken on this already. The issue of the lack of knowledge also can bee seen in history, but more subtle way.  During the Roman Empire, Roman generals conquered because of their military tactics, which they learned from the Spartans.  This was the knowledge that helped them direct their path.   During the early 20th century, the early foundations of capitalism were laid by men who understood that the numbers of hour in a day were the same for everyone, and by leveraging their time they could achieve great wealth. The fear of failure in humans is an issue I don't feel authoritative about.  I deal with the fear of failure in my own life on a daily basis.  It is a journey we all must take.  I did, however, find a few resources for starting on that journey and they are listed at the end of this article. The lack of knowledge we face in the information age is something I feel better equipped to address.  I feel equipped to address it because I realize that the lack of knowledge we face is not gained by attending college, by learning about information technology, by not learning about business.  The lack of knowledge we face is fundamental problem solving.  Problems exist all around us.  As humans we are fundamentally problem solvers.  Any profession, business, non-profit organization is all problem solvers in one form or another.  We tend to focus on the tools that are used to solve these problems, but there will always be new tools.  Keeping up with new tools is difficult and best left to someone who is an expert in their field.  To conquer the lack of knowledge we face in any profession we must understand how to solve problems successfully. Problem solving is something I believe they don't teach in school anymore.  Oh yeah, you probably have solved a few math problems, but have you tackled a problem bigger than yourself?  Try it.  Just take a look at history, pick a great person and see how they solved problems.  By dealing with these two issues, we are directly dealing with our lack of confidence in our lives today.  By overcoming our fear of failure, we won't be scared to do our best in anything we do.  By overcoming our lack of knowledge, we will have the confidence to move forward knowing that we are equipped to deal with any task that we are confronted with. Links:
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