Knowledge is not power

“Young people today just don’t have what it takes”, is the frustration voiced by so many employers.

In my opinion there is nothing wrong with our young people, it’s what we are doing to them that makes too many unemployable. We are perpetuating an already massive problem with high youth unemployment. There are two prime causes, firstly lousy parenting; I am at an age where my parents set an example, where decent, acceptable, loving and fair discipline was the norm. Where self control was taught and accepted. Where manners and social skills were as important as school results and where we actually ate together round a table.

The second cause is our educational system where we are just not preparing our young people for today’s challenging, competitive and more demanding market place. Be it at school, college or university our young people are being taught/educated by educationalists who in most cases have never worked in the so called “real world.” Sadly the teachers just haven’t a clue of what is needed and indeed wanted by employers. The youth leave university and college believing they are God’s gift to humanity with all these unusable and superfluous qualifications. Attitude – communication skills and awareness that the customer pays the wages are virtually nonexistent. Most can’t even manage themselves let alone step into a so called management role to which they think they are entitled.

“Knowledge is power” is a stupid phrase dreamt up by an extinct educationalist. Knowledge is potential power, we get paid not for what we know, but what we do with what we know. There is a solution – see next issue.

Published: 2nd December 2012