The Revolution Faster Than Our Mindsets

Layoff announcements this year have topped 1.1 million. For many, this brings a familiar unease. 

But here is what most people miss: What if these headlines are not signaling economic weakness, but a transformation that will redefine work for the next generation?

This moment is not behaving like 2008 or 2020. The data is not flashing “recession.” It points to a technological shift moving faster than our culture, workplaces, or education systems can absorb. 

Previous revolutions took decades. This one is arriving at a sprint. And because software scales faster than robotics, disruption is hitting white-collar roles first, where tasks are easier to automate.

This is why the narrative does not match the reality. Companies are not simply pulling back. They are restructuring around new efficiencies. AI reduces overhead, streamlines workflows, and accelerates output. We have experienced this inside our own firm. Tools that handle administrative or repetitive tasks have not replaced our work. They have freed us to focus more deeply on strategy, planning, and the relationship-driven guidance clients rely on.

To understand how we arrived here, it helps to look back to 2022, a year that was defined not by a lack of jobs, but a lack of people. Millions of openings sat unfilled. Employers raised wages, offered bonuses, and still could not hire fast enough. 

When businesses cannot find workers, they have two options: reduce output or automate. Most chose automation. We ushered AI in out of necessity, not convenience.

Layer in declining birth rates and a shrinking future workforce, and the direction becomes even clearer. The demographic foundation supporting the old labor market is weakening. Technology is filling the gap.

This brings us to the most important point.
The future we assumed our children would inherit has changed. Not in a catastrophic way, but in a way that requires openness.

For decades, the “safe” path was a four-year degree and a corporate role. Today, many of those roles are evolving rapidly, while skilled trades and vocational paths remain surprisingly resilient. College is not the wrong choice, but it is no longer the only one.

Our responsibility now is to recognize that multiple paths can lead to meaningful careers. We cannot slow this transition, but we can prepare for it. 

We can stay informed. 

We can stay flexible. 

And we can guide the next generation toward opportunities that match the world they are entering, not the one we once expected.

If this moment offers anything, it is the chance to release old assumptions and embrace a broader definition of success, one that reflects the workforce ahead rather than the world behind us.