April 25 marks National Take Your Child to Work Day, a day that has me reflecting on how much the workplace has evolved—and where it’s possibly headed.
As a millennial, I grew up in a world where both my parents worked full-time in the workplace. There was a clear recommendation from the adults in our lives: go to college, get a degree, and land a stable 9-to-5 job. But now? The workplace looks entirely different. Gig work, remote jobs, and flexible schedules are becoming the norm as our generation prioritizes work-life balance in ways previous generations probably couldn’t have imagined.
But what does this mean for the next generation? look at the cost of college tuition – it feels impossible to think of pushing kids to start their adult lives with skyrocketing debt that are maybe, meaningless? Think about it—why are we still taking general education courses that may never apply to our actual careers? Could we move toward a more streamlined system where students take only the courses relevant to their chosen fields? Or at the very least focusing on specific skills that will support them in any career. And with the rise of AI, will we see a renewed push toward trade schools and skill-based education instead of the traditional four-year degree? We were already starting to see this evolution pre-AI. Will this put the push back to trades into overdrive.
And beyond education, what will the workplace even look like? Will office spaces continue to shrink as remote work takes over? How will AI reshape roles that once required a person.
What do you think? Will the traditional office job become a thing of the past? Will college still be the “golden ticket” for success, or will we redefine education and career paths for the next generation?