A new kind of man

Ever wonder why your plumber, roofer, motor car mechanic, machinist or electrician has suddenly become the new rich?

It's not because boys don't want to do these newly reinvented, more complex jobs, it's because many of them can't. It's mostly boys who are ending up in the unemployable queue, who once upon a time could fool around at school, and get a job in their mid-20s that employed their physical abilities - laborer, farm-hand or truck driver.

These labor intensive, low brain-power jobs are becoming scarce.

The time has come to reinvent how we think about men, and what we expect them to be. No more competitive, ego-centric, comfort-seeking, super-sexualized, predators concerned with social status, that drop out of school. Not merely a uni-dimensional Jock.

More an improvement/enhancement to the current styles, Jock, Military man, Sportsman, College Joe, Rebel, Cowboy, Hunter, Joe College, Sportsman, Businessman, Man About Town, Dandy and Nerd. More able to empathize with others, work in a team, lead others, use technology and solve problems. More responsible. More robust. More assured of themselves, but with a greater degree of humility.

In some industries there are looming shortages of skills, which are driving up the cost of services....think plumbing and electrical work around your home or someone to fix your car's computer. Shortages of some highly skilled workers are limiting big corporation's abilities to transform themselves, to make use of new flexible systems, or install or maintain sophisticated systems.

What used to be skilled trades are demanding ever higher literacy, numeracy and computer skills. No more mindlessly performing a narrowly designed/defined job on a production line. The machinist who makes parts for jet aircraft or makes molds for plastic parts, or machines components for engines has to use brain power as well as brawn to do his work.

With each wave of societal change, not only have we automated the work of the earlier techno-cultural periods, but with each successive wave, the new tools we create have a multiplier effect back through the system.

In the current shift from the Information Age to the Knowledge Age, new tools are being invented that transform highly physical Hunter-gatherer, Agriculture and Industrial age jobs into brawn+brain jobs. The few remaining original jobs that require heavy lifting only, are being driven, little by little, to extinction.

So, as teachers of these young people, here's a workshop to explore how we can change the way we think about and engage with young men, so we guide them to prepare for more complex ways of working:

1. Brainstorm a list of the attributes of tomorrow's man, the kind of young man who is able to participate fully and responsibly in society
2. Who are the role models for this new kind of man, and how can they exert a powerful influence over him and the worlds in which he moves?
3. What do we have to do to ensure that we create learning environments in which this new kind of young man will not only survive, but also thrive?
4. What should we do, so that people with whom this new kind of man interacts, positively reinforce his new image of himself?
5. What new kinds of support structures in the family, home and community do we need need to create that can encourage this new kind of man?