Work, The Future, and Meaning

In this fifteenth episode of the Wisdom for Life radio show, hosts Dan Hayes and Greg Sadler discuss some of the issues on the horizon facing us in terms of the types and availability of work.  As further developments in robotics, automation, artificial intelligence, surveillance and logistics take place, the jobs and careers of many people are not just at risk, but likely to be phased out in the coming decades.

 

They discuss a number of the scenarios projected as possible by different theorists , including Peter Frase (author of Four Futures) and the RSA Action and Research Center.  Some of these are utopian, some are dystopian, and some fit in between.  One of the central questions is how people who currently find a lot of their meaning in work, will manage that if work becomes no longer available in the modes they are accustomed to.

They end the show by discussing a practice that listeners could engage in – developing a robust locus of meaning disconnected from work within one’s life.

 

Peter Frase, “Four Futures” – https://jacobinmag.com/2011/12/four-futures

RSA Action and Research Center report: The Four Futures of Work – https://www.thersa.org/globalassets/pdfs/reports/rsa_four-futures-of-work.pdf

 

Show Music is by Scott Tarulli – https://www.scotttarulli.com/