Constant change
Life isn’t static.
The older I get the more I appreciate that I’m going through constant change.
For example, right now, my son ‘Tom’ has joined Pure Transfer as an apprentice.

A time to reflect
Talk about making me feel old! It’s so strange to see my son do and experience things I feel like I was doing and experiencing myself only yesterday – or maybe the day before.
You get the picture.
Having Tom start with the company, and seeing his role from both sides of the fence, so to speak (as his dad and his employer), has made me reevaluate a lot, including my own time as an apprentice.

My biggest learning
Looking back to my time as a pipe welding apprentice at Hurst and Carr in Liverpool, I remember it as one of the best periods of my life. I made great friends and tasted a little of that independence I’d be wanting since I was a kid.
But 30-odd years on, the biggest thing I really learned back then was:
‘Getting used to doing shit you don’t like.’

Putting in the hard yards
Let me be clear, when I was an apprentice, much of the time I’d prefer to be somewhere else, doing something else. In fact, you could argue that’s how most adults feel most of the time. During my apprenticeship, under the guidance of ‘Uncle Ernie’ – a friend of the family who was in management at Hurst and Carr – I learned about the power of delayed gratification. I discovered that getting anywhere in life was all about turning up and putting in the hard graft. Often that graft isn’t exciting – but that doesn’t provide an excuse for not doing it.

A different world
My generation was very different from that my son Tom is part of. We didn’t have half the conveniences and experiences that young people today are so familiar with. For me, technology, especially social media, marks the biggest departure. I see it as a quiet poison, unsettling them with unrealistic narratives .

An unhelpful view
When I was young we all knew we wanted success or a different type of life from our parents but that was quite an abstract idea. We certainly didn’t carry something in our pockets that gave us a permanent window into the lives of the privileged in our pocket, nor were we told that we should be aspiring to that life right now. Social media gives an unhelpful view on a world that’s as fake as can be. An imaginary place where a lifestyle that’s frankly unrealistic without hard work, is shown as being attainable instantly.

A different challenge
So, I increasingly understand that Tom’s going to be facing a challenge I never had to deal with. As the son of the boss, he’s going to have to learn that in the short term at least, his family ties don’t come with any benefits. The harsh reality of getting stuck in with the day to day grind of work, may be a bitter pill to swallow. But, in my view, it’s the biggest gift I can give him.

The sky’s the limit
Once a work ethic, that doesn’t mind rolling up its sleeves and getting things done, is installed then the opportunities for Tom are going to be numerous. But he’s only going to achieve anything through hard work, and that starts now – boss’s son on not.

What do you think?
Do you agree that this new generation, intellectually aware of so much more of the world than we ever were, is hampered by lacking the experience-acquired skills needed to understand the world they see?
What would the biggest gift you’d give to someone starting out on their career journey today be?

It’s definitely food for thought.

Murph