Adapting to the world changing around you is a core part of human life. You don’t necessarily have to like those changes all that much. But if you want to survive and thrive, you have to be somewhat flexible. Enter—stage left—your career. The odds are that your current workflow is going to shift a ton in the near future due to changes in technology. Meanwhile, you might even find that your job, as a concept, goes extinct because the demand plummets.
It’s a part of life. And you’re not the first to feel anxious. In a viral online thread, the older professionals of Reddit spilled the beans about what jobs have pretty much vanished in their lifetimes, from telephone and elevator operators to ice and milk delivery people. Scroll down to read their experiences, Pandas. Oh, and be sure to tell your careers not to worry—it’s important never to panic.
Bored Panda got in touch with Jaime-Alexis Fowler, the founder and executive director of the non-profit organization Empower Work, for her thoughts about the future of work and how to respond to change. Meanwhile, we also reached out to u/tshirtguy2000, who sparked the interesting online thread, for their insights. You'll find both of our interviews as you scroll down.
#21
My father had a cigarette vending machine business. In his day, one of his employees put 2 cents change in between a double pack because it was 2 for 23 cents.
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23points
Are you at all worried about your jobs getting replaced, dear Pandas? What careers or skills do you think will disappear in your lifetimes? Have you already seen some popular jobs (almost) completely vanish already? What career paths would you choose if money wasn’t an issue at all?
We’d love to hear your thoughts on all of this. Grab your favorite beverage and scroll down to the bottom of the post to share your experiences in the comments section.
#22
I was a newspaper pressman for over 20 years. No luck getting another one of those jobs for me I think. After 2 layoffs from 2 different newspapers who ended production I would have to move out of state to find another newspaper job. This vocation is on the verge of extinction.
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22points
#23
Vacuum and sewing machine stores. My mom used to take hers in for repairs and had the same vacuum and sewing machine for years. Nowadays people just replace them every few years.
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22points
#24
Repairmen in general. TV repair people. Stereo repair people. Even computer repair is probably going to be gone in a few years. We live in a disposable economy now where when things break they're replaced, not repaired.
Even big systems like central air conditioners are now becoming obsolete and no longer economically viable to repair (as the government keeps changing freon types and making the older coolants less available and more expensive).
The other day I bought a 1970s receiver at a thrift store. I was amazed at how "repair friendly" it was. While it didn't work properly when I bought it, I was able to get it fully-working in less than an hour with some basic electronics repair experience. It's a shame those days are long gone. Most modern electronics are difficult if not impossible to repair without very specialized, very expensive equipment.
Even big systems like central air conditioners are now becoming obsolete and no longer economically viable to repair (as the government keeps changing freon types and making the older coolants less available and more expensive).
The other day I bought a 1970s receiver at a thrift store. I was amazed at how "repair friendly" it was. While it didn't work properly when I bought it, I was able to get it fully-working in less than an hour with some basic electronics repair experience. It's a shame those days are long gone. Most modern electronics are difficult if not impossible to repair without very specialized, very expensive equipment.
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21points
#25
Car Audio Installer. Best Buy even had a garage at the back for the techs to tear out the standard radio and put in those fancy new cd players...or cassette prior to that. As I recall, a cassette player was an upgrade on a new car that not everyone was willing to do.
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21points
#26
Someone said 411, but if you are too young to remember, that was "Information". You called and could get someone's phone number. A live phone book, basically. I once called for the time...they were flexible.
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21points
#27
Drafting technicians have become CAD operators. Typist has become (different terms) but someone who formats documents instead of just typing them.
Data Entry Clerks are much less common. Instead of entering data, you just have to analyze supplied data.
Data Entry Clerks are much less common. Instead of entering data, you just have to analyze supplied data.
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20points
#28
Asbestos installer.
michiganwinter
And when they installed it, they do it without a mask or any dust protection with a cigarette hanging out of their mouth and now they’re wrapped up in plastic wearing a respirator.
michiganwinter
And when they installed it, they do it without a mask or any dust protection with a cigarette hanging out of their mouth and now they’re wrapped up in plastic wearing a respirator.
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20points
#29
Bike messenger. I moved to San Francisco during the height of bike messengers, and it was quite a sight to see hundreds of young, tattooed, punky-looking people with incredible calves riding up and down Market St. downtown every weekday.
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20points
#30
Printing press operatiors.
BabyKatsMom
As well as a slew of supporting jobs in the industry- typesetters, compugraphic operators, paste-up artists, process camera operators, scanners and Scitex operators, film etchers, strippers, plate makers, proofers, paper loaders, collators and bindery workers.
As well as a slew of supporting jobs in the industry- typesetters, compugraphic operators, paste-up artists, process camera operators, scanners and Scitex operators, film etchers, strippers, plate makers, proofers, paper loaders, collators and bindery workers.
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18points