First, be careful how much news you watch , all news is designed to be depressing because bad news sells. So I think it is best to limit your exposure , especially if you want to keep your sanity. I am also reminded of the ‘sales truism’ that all people can be motivated by fear and/or greed and we have a lot of that going around. So, the moral is “if you want to be manipulated less, don’t read too much news.”
However, there is a truth about our troubling economy. Our nation is in a period of transition. Unemployment has nearly doubled in my county this past year and we are supposed to be one of the ‘lucky’ counties in California with economic recovery slated for sometime in 2012; however, with major metropolitan areas like Los Angeles viewed darkly until ‘2014 or beyond’ the impact will be here for longer than most will accept.
Obviously, the real secret to staying ahead of the big challenges is to have a job… and the best jobs are those that are likely to be in demand even in tough times. Some young people fall in love with smaller communities and fool themselves into believing they can stay by holding multiple ‘joe jobs’, but having two or three jobs is meaningless if all of them are equally vulnerable to elimination. The young need to go where the better jobs are. If I were to give unsolicited and unwanted advice to any young person, I would tell them:
1) They need to get the better skills needed to help them compete in our new world. This means they need to look honestly at what type of education will have value in the future marketplace.
2) I would caution them that if they didn’t have a great job, the cost of a good party might be beyond their reach. 😉
3) Lastly, I would suggest they look at careers and parts of the county and the world to start their life that they might not have considered before.
4) The world still is for those who can adjust to change and have the courage to move forward whether at 20 or 70.
Look honestly at the world, then you’ll know what to do.
Roger