Sentimentally Influential

I am "back at work" today, with the quotation marks indicating that while I am technically working, I am not operating at full efficiency. This is my first day back since getting Covid and while I don't have a fever, I do still have the lingering tiredness that comes with any flu. On top of that, there has been far too many painkillers consumed, which is on top of what I take since the stroke and, it hasn't really agreed with me.

I feel lethargic, foggy and a little muddled, but I have a lot of work to do this month and a month to do it is not very long at all. But hey, working under a bit of pressure isn't all that bad, is it?

Sometimes I wish I could do a mindless job, where I just do some kind of set task that I can automate mentally and just repeat over and over. Of course, I will probably get bored doing this once I have to do it, but sometimes I think that it is what I might need to feel like I am making progress - by doing things where the process, outcomes and expectations are clear.

These days, there is very little clarity on any of these things, yet I still have to make sure that I meet the expectations of all stakeholders, which is easier said than done, when there are competing desires within the stakeholder group. This doesn't mean that they necessarily want different things either, it could just be that their understanding of what they want is looking at the same thing from different perspectives.

There are the strategic considerations and the tactical, and I am not really good at the tactical side of things. The strategic is pretty easy, as it is looking out with softer eyes into the distance of time to consider where we are and where we want to be. The tactical is how we are going to get there and while I see that long view, I am not great at organizing all of the little steps along the path. But, I am not on the steering committee board, so I have to keep "fish out of watering" it for some time to come.

I was thinking about this a little though and was wondering, what if I was in a position where I didn't have to work, would that then "qualify" me for a thought leadership role? It seems that often, the people who are listened to are those who don't actually have to work anymore and I was wondering if it is because there is the expectation that they will be more honest, since they don't have to do it for the money. This doesn't mean it is an accurate appraisal, but we do tend to listen to those we see as successful more than those we do not and often, wealth signals success.

For example, in a hypothetical situation where crypto booms to the sun and I don't have to work at all - I wonder if I went in and quit my job, if the people who have been negative on crypto, would start to change their tune. Would my success be the "social proof" they need to get involved?

It is hard to say of course, but I think that it is why so many people follow the advice of influencers, because they figure that the influencer is successful and therefore, should know. However, the influence really should be domain specific, but it tends not to be. Just becasue someone can successfully generate attention on a social media platform, doesn't mean they are qualified to talk about healthcare. Similarly, just because someone is a coder, doesn't mean they are qualified to talk about the economics of Bitcoin.

I don't know what I am qualified for - but I tend to do a lot of random stuff.

Jack of all trades, master of none

Maybe it is more - Jack all trades.

It actually worries me a bit, because if I do have to work another 25 years, I don't think I have the skills to stay employed all of that time. I will be replaced by either faster, younger, smarter or an AI.

Many are in this boat.

Robots don't get ill, they don't get the flu and with good enough coding, they will outperform even the best of us, so what chance do the average and below have?

Make hay while the sun shines.

I wonder if the people who are avoiding work currently, will miss the opportunity to work once it is no longer available. I think a lot assume that there will always be money from somewhere to take care of them, but I don't think that is the case. At some point, there will not be enough needed for workers and without enough employed, there is no money for social services. Then what?

I guess I will cross that bridge when I come to it, but in the meantime, I will keep working with crypto on the side for a just in case future where I will be able to walk into work and quit, but become more employable because people will think that I am successful.

It's all about market sentiment.