Leaving one's job can be difficult, losing it is even worse. 

During lockdown we saw the huge effect the economy had on the average employee. 

The hospitality, retail and entertainment industries were badly hit while other industries just managed to get by. 

Big corporations were laying off their staff while the smaller more independent companies - mum & pop stores - suffered the most. 

You just have to walk down the street of your main town or city to see empty shops and boarded signs up for rent. 

So, what’s the alternative?

More than 150 years ago there was a chap who you might’ve heard of, goes by the name of Charles Darwin, and he wrote a book titled ‘On the Origins of Species’ and in it there’s a quote that still holds true today: 

“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.”

Adapting to change is what each and everyone of us has to embrace to move forward. 

We must readjust, acclimatise and shift our perceptions to what the market dictates. 

If we’re handed a lemon (either the job we work or the business we run that’s in analogue mode) and we’re struggling to make ends meet, then we must turn that citrus fruit on its head and make some lemonade. 

When a retail store is forced to close down due to competition from the big boys (Amazon, Ebay, Shopify et al) the choice is clear, shift your local store into a digital one and turn it into an online global shop. 

There is no excuse why smaller shops, mum & pop stores and even employees, can’t embrace the e-commerce trend, to learn, to fail, to adapt and eventually be able sell products or services all over the world. 

The aim is to think outside the congested box we’ve all grown up in, and to broaden our horizons, see what works, and follow those who’ve made it. Success leaves clues so there’s no reason why we can’t pick up on those hints ourselves and just do it. 

They say that the great resignation is upon us and millions of workers could be out of jobs due to newer technology and AI taking over. Jobs such as:

• Factory workers 
• Bus, taxi and truck drivers
• Phone operators and telemarketers 
• Receptionists
• Accountants 
• Bank tellers and clerks  

Can become redundant overnight. Therefore, we have to embrace the big shift by starting with a small shift mindset and asking ourselves the following:

What is it that we’re good at? 

What hobbies do we have that could potentially generate us income? 

What skills have we acquired in our life that we can share with others? 

What products can we create that will find an audience (even if it’s niche)?

Then we take the first step, each day, to learn, to adapt, and grow. 

It’s a crawl, walk, run process that needs to be applied consistently without fail.  

We can’t allow ourselves or afford to be scared when it comes to embracing the gargantuan e-commerce empire. If we have no option but to resign from our current job, or shifting to another career, then embracing a digital economy is a necessity not a privilege. 

Thousands have done it before and we can do the same. 

We just have to trust in the process and make the right progress, in mind and in spirit. 

#thebigshift #greatresignation #digitaleconomy