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Forum Post: The Con of Jobs: Why Employment is NOT self-reliance

Posted 12 years ago on Nov. 26, 2011, 11:33 a.m. EST by Jackofhearts (36)
This content is user submitted and not an official statement

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqAC9hGK3B8

One thing I didn't mention in this video is college's role in all of this, and how colleges have become akin to job training centers.

11 Comments

11 Comments


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[-] 2 points by Kevabe (81) 12 years ago

Then what is self-relience, Im sure youre one of those who believes dependant upon the government = self reliance.

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[-] 2 points by Jackofhearts (36) 12 years ago

No, Kevabe, entrepreneurship, is self-reliance, finding your own way to create wealth is self-reliance, sometimes they're called 'outliers' sometimes, mini-factories, but people moving to create their own streams of income and sources of wealth... and in fact up until the industrial revolution, the majority of people WERE entrepreneurs. Jobs are an abomination, that is keeping us dependent upon corporations. Are you unable to see the logic of the video?

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[-] 1 points by Kevabe (81) 12 years ago

Okay, I can agree with entrepreneurship as being more self reliant than being employed. But, please allow me to also interject and say that in some circumstances the ability to exceed expectations and boost productivity can lead to high reward. Yes, I am aware that it is all too common that the rewards do not match the increase of production or benefit provided. However, it gives the individual the experience and understanding of the relations between each facet within the infrastructure that makes up the business. This experience will arm him/her with the knowledge needed to succeed as an entreprenuer. I whole heartedly agree that entreprenuership is much more self reliant. I also know that it takes great risk and therefore those who take on the challenge should be able to reap the rewards thier hardwork produces in a way that only capitalism can provide.

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[-] 1 points by Jackofhearts (36) 12 years ago

So, you can see the value of entrepreneurship, but I see you've argued for careerism in some regard. Personally I find the job 'experience' lacking in value for personal development, with a few rare exceptions perhaps. But I'm somewhat curious. Though I see your point, the development of domain knowledge, I question why the development of that knowledge, in your opinion, exists primarily in (dependent) career work as opposed to self-education, consulting, or mentoring?

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[-] 1 points by Kevabe (81) 12 years ago

I think it exists in both settings. Obviously, many businesses will departamentalize job tasks and segregate them based on duties whether this is due to preventing employees from turnkey operation blue-prints or simply a matter of increasing operation efficiency is an entirely different matter. The experience one gains from an already running company is good becuase he/she will already have a slate full of concepts put into action that already work, and only need to make adjustments for any venture he/she may have. I do not believe it is primarily existant in a dependant setting. I simply do not regard the idea of being employed as not being independant. I for example am employed. The company I work for is very young and I gained my job based on a very big need the company had. I excell in my work and now hold a lot of weight on various decisions becuase the owners of the company feel dependant upon the objectives I complete. As work increased I made them hire my wife and give her a salary equal to mine. In time as I gain more experience, we plan to branch off and open our own business providing similar services. I currently know how to fulfill every aspect related to my job. The issue is that the field is competitive enough to where if I were to open my own business tomorrow, I would not likely win any contracts due to my resume history being still so young in the related industry. I also still need to build up my savings for the capital needed for the business venture. The ability to raise this start up capital is made possible from being employed. I can agree that if someone is already well off and has a very good bit of knowledge related to the type of business they desire to operate, then being employed for a moment my not necessarily be their best option.

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[-] 1 points by Jackofhearts (36) 12 years ago

That's kind of the Catch-22 isn't it? Our typical job training suggests we need a large amount of capital to hire workers, and start a business, if we want personal financial freedom, but at the same time, the majority of jobs, especially at present, aren't the upper middle class type that allow for that kind of investment.

Now while you're personal experience seems to lend itself to the idea that your particular area of expertise is in high demand, presumably you can agree that this isn't true of the overall work-force (hence a large degree of unemployment). This also may lend itself to your feelings of autonomy. (iow, you have no worries about making demands, or quitting your job for another, moving, etc due to the high demand for your expertise)

So while this option seems like it may be open to that kind of a privileged position, I'm sure you can see how this would be a problem for the average worker, and their personal pursuit of freedom.

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[-] 1 points by CrystalP (79) 12 years ago

I couldn't agree more and I haven't watched your video yet (I will in a minute). This idea is not impossible, and can go a long way in helping level the economic playing field. We have Amish here in Michigan who do quite well for themselves as entrepreneurs. For example there is a small camper parked at the gas station many times through the year where the Amish sell there baked goods. This one stand is sold out every time and provides the community with non processed home made baked goods. Quality products, at a fair price, and independent of any government interference. I thin we can learn a great deal from observing those who live on the fringe of society to see what works, what doesn't work, and what we can tweek to make work.

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[-] 1 points by Jackofhearts (36) 12 years ago

I actually live in MI too, and I've got some great Amish furniture.

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[-] 1 points by Jackofhearts (36) 12 years ago

A Demonstration of how Jobs are slavery.

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[-] 1 points by Pitviper (4) 12 years ago

Jackofhearts you might like this free ebook, 1000s of talking points: http://www.individualism.asia/downloadables/Individualism.pdf

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