Gail's Blog

An Endangered Species–The Middleman/Woman

The world is on a disrupter tear.  It is disruption all over the world.  This hasBuilding collapsing or being demolished with debris falling down been in the works for some time and has many causes.  One of these being the changeover from an industrial age to a technology age.  Land, labor and capital is not enough to succeed today.  You must also have “knowledge”.  For areas of the world that don’t have knowledge, these areas will wither in progress.  We see this quite easily in the United States where the bulk of new jobs and progress is being created in city hubs.  These provide educational opportunities, corporate activities and networking for those who reside in them.  Areas of the US that don’t have these qualities are being left further behind.  An overall disruption is taking place throughout the United States.  It is easy to see the areas already disrupted and the areas that will soon be disrupted.    As disruption occurs,  jobs can be lost in the disruption.

We have seen Amazon completely disrupt how books are sold and retail brick and mortar stores close.  We see AirbNb take over the hotel industry and provide practical prices for the consumer.  The same goes with Uber and Lyft.  We see bank tellers disappearing.  The Chase branch near my house has no walk-up tellers.  There are only ATM’s and private banking services.  Do-it-yourself checkouts, shrinkage of travel agents, and loss of stock broker jobs due to clients trading themselves using computer system advisers are just a tip of the iceberg.  Soon to go will be real estate agents and brokers, insurance sales people, bus, truck and train drivers.

Industries ripe for disruption are those having middle men/women.  Health care agents,  insurance companies themselves, brokers in the business world, brokers in general.  Those who have “boutique knowledge” and specialties will be fine but those that can be disrupted, will be.  The world belongs to those who have “knowledge” and who know how to organize it.  Put another way, simply having two strong arms and a willingness to work is no longer a sufficient condition for success.  Hence, you see a great deal of resentment bubbling up from areas of the country where this was in the past enough for success.  Sections of our country are ripe for promises that cannot be fulfilled.  This was the main reason why the 2016 electoral college went to Donald Trump.

The area that will not be spared disruption is the political world.  All elected officials are actually acting as brokers for their constituents.  The country  will eventually turn over this old structure and eliminate the large, cumbersome structure of the Federal government.  It is showing it cannot respond to the states’ and cities’ needs.  “Representatives sent to the capital no longer represent the interests of their constituents, but instead look out for their political party, or, more often than not, their own interest.” Louis-Vincent Gave of Gavekal Research.

The game-changer of a “Knowledge Based” world should make each of take a look at our own preparation for this new world and begin the changes necessary for our success and our survival.


5 responses to “An Endangered Species–The Middleman/Woman”

  1. Nadine Appel says:

    Thank you. I needed the reminder that sometimes there is a high cost for doing right no matter with or with out support. I feel chaotic times increasing. I am unnerved at peoples lack of knowledge and lack of caring on multiple levels. Sad times.

  2. Gloria says:

    So, basically…all politics will become local?
    We just had a “ranked choice” election…I called the local ad-based free paper asking why they didn’t provide the party registration of the candidates for mayor. One, who had been mayor about 20 years ago and was in cahoots with a crooked developer, decided to run again. There were several others from the same ideology who luckily split the vote. However, why the papers and even the League of Women voters failed to ID party affiliation and only accept the lovely answers provided to some questions is beyond me. There was never a discussion or reporting about the former mayor…all down the memory hole.
    The only way local governance can work is if the LOCAL media does the job…who knows if that going to happen?

  3. Gerry Fightmaster says:

    There is a global political force that is re-establishing feudalism.

  4. Wendy says:

    What should I be telling my children in their twenties?
    How to prepare my grandchildren?
    I am a 62 year old late bloomer and a massage therapist, I don’t plan to retire just keep on reinventing myself.
    Where should my focus for myself and my future and family?

  5. Gary Sund says:

    Trump got elected because he read the sentiment of the people.
    Half the electorate was disgusted with the way things were going in Washington.
    He capitalized on that disgust and became a Major Disruptor

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