Are We Killing Our Young Peoples Futures?

We have heard so much about the ‘ring-fencing’ of education during the recent election campaign here in the UK that I started to ask myself the question - Why? After all, all our children are getting an education at the moment and by ‘ring-fencing’ education surely all we are doing is allowing any waste to continue.

Questions really do need to be asked about how the education system works and if it could be done in a better way or indeed if it needs to be changed as a matter of urgency.

I’d like to look at a number of areas, but today I want to focus on just one. That is the issue of how many of our young people should go to university.

Before I start, I want to assure you that I have no desire to stop anyone from doing anything they want to do or stand in their way when planning their futures. Indeed freedom of choice is actually one of my arguments.
Our education system is designed to encourage as many young people to go to university as is possible (Government target of 50%). Yet we find graduates working in the local supermarket unable to find work and taking jobs that those who did not go to university should perhaps be filling.
Why can they not get a job doing what they have trained to do? Well perhaps the answer is simply that there are not enough of these specialist jobs, and those who obtain the best results get the best jobs. Those who perhaps should not have gone to university or obtained a degree at a lower level or in a more general subject area are likely to find it harder to find employment.

You may not agree with me, but let us suppose that all young people could go to university and obtain a first class honour degree … after all if we can improve our education system as many say we can, then that might be possible. If everyone has a degree, then what value is having a degree going to be? We could of course simply introduce a ‘super-degree’ so that those with the very best results stand out.

Although this concept is only fictional the truth is it is also impractical and would be fatal for our economy. The dreams that the last government created when they instigated plans for every child to have access to university with 50% achieving that dream seems fine on paper. The real problem is that it has set a precedent for the future. Today’s new parents now expect their children to go to university as a matter of course. Anything else is not acceptable. The focus is on achieving that dream of everyone having a degree, which then might be worthless.
Sadly, young people who do not do well at school often feel that they are second class citizens and that no one really cares about them! This is wrong, everyone is part of our society.

So what is wrong you may ask?

Who is going to build our homes, check our central heating system or repair our cars? These skilled jobs and many others are absolutely vital and need young people to be trained, perhaps using old fashioned apprenticeships, moving to work in these critical areas. Sadly young people see these types of skilled jobs as ‘second-class’ and strive to go to university. It is time to change that image and make apprenticeships as important as university education.

Whether we like it or not, we need highly skilled people, educated to the highest levels. We also need technically skilled people to do all those tasks that individuals cannot do. Finally we also need those semi-skilled and unskilled people who carry out the millions of low paid jobs in our retail, hotel and caring industries.

No! I’m not getting into a discussion about how much these essential workers get paid! Personally I think it is disgusting that carers and checkout operators get paid so badly.

Not everyone is bright enough to be a doctor or engineer – and we don’t need millions. Not everyone is clever enough to be a plumber or a motor mechanic – and we don’t need that many anyway. Not everyone is cut out to be a supermarket checkout operator or a home carer. But all these jobs are essential and important, and every human being should feel worthy of what they do.

I’ve worked as a company director, as a software developer, as a baker and even a fishmonger in a supermarket. I’m sure there are other things that I will do as well. Whatever the job I do – it does not make me a different person. I might earn £100 per hour in one job, and only £5.85 in another … but I am still the same person.

Crucially whatever job we do, someone has to do it, because it is essential. We, as a nation need to take the stigma out of education and recognise that we need people of all skills and abilities.

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The Past has Gone - Roll on the FUTURE

The last few months have seen me go from being a confident business person, struggling with a new project to a bankrupt - losing everything that I had. Fortunately, that was not a lot more than a huge pile of bank debt! No one can take away my spirit, passion, motivation desire or my experiences.

If I'm honest the only real thing that has gone - is the debt! OK so my credit rating has taken a bashing, but already I have been offered a credit card and a new bank account. Yes the interest rate is a little higher ... who cares ... I'm not in the market for credit or a bank account at this time anyway.

One of the huge benefits is that the stress and worry of having a growing debt around ones neck, suddenly disappears. Yes, I had to go to court, but the judge did not even see me - he just signed the application. Yes, I had to speak with the Official Receiver, but we did that on the phone, and the person I spoke with was most understanding and made me feel as relaxed as he could under the circumstances.

As a result of the bankruptcy I have relinquished all my directorships, closed both of my companies down, had a huge clear out of stuff accumulated over the last twenty years or so, shredded all those bank and credit card statements and now my office at home looks much tidier than before and I feel a lot more content and relaxed. The house is getting decorated. The garden is getting some attention. Even the environment is better off as I am not burning tankfuls of petrol each month!

Of course the important thing is to learn from the whole episode. What did I do wrong? How had I got myself into that mess? What must I do to avoid such a thing again? What shall I do next?

I have pondered over this for the last few months. Well my first problem was how to tell other people that I was a failure! What would they think of me? Would anyone listen to me ever again? Even one of my daughters suggested that I get a job and be thankful for the little house I live in (it has a low rent) and be grateful that I am in good health ... and STOP dreaming about being rich and successful again! Is she right?

Well all these things transverse through my head. I decided to look for a new job and found one quite quickly. More by luck than anything else. But I discovered that my new employer did not have an office for me - I would have to share with him. They had no computer for me to use, or a telephone, mobile or even a decent chair. Then I discovered that they had no money to invest in the project. To top it all, they were not willing to listen to me when I tried to highlight the issues that were standing in our way.

For the first time in my life, I politely (well that's my explanation) told them where they could stick their job ... and went home, never to return. Hey! I'd learnt something from going bankrupt ... how to identify when things are not right!

Since then I sat down and decided (whilst my mind was confused) that I just wanted a really simple job that I could leave behind at 5pm when I went home. Driving a delivery van, stacking shelves, even sweeping roads or cutting grass! That is what I wanted to do! After all, I'm 58 and in just seven years I will retire and someone else can look after me!

Then something happened! I logged onto my computer today to check my emails. I found an invitation to connect on Plaxo to an old friend Reg Athwal (http://www.regathwal.com/) who I had known for a number of years but had not spoken too for some time. I accepted his invitation and as an after though visited his website to see what he was up to these days. I clicked on a couple of links and eventually watched a long video recording of Reg presenting at the India Retail Forum 2007 in Mumbai.

His words immediately touched me. I started to get excited about what he was saying. My mind went back to the past and all the things I had heard, said and believed in! Suddenly I realised that I was not being fair to myself. I had been pushed into a corner and was accepting my lot as if I was a two year old. This was not me. I'm Jim Tuffin, I'm passionate about a whole host of things ... that passion has not gone away however much I'm trying to convince myself it has.

So here I am. Bankrupt! No money! Feeling bad about myself! Getting older by the day! Hopeless! Helpless!

BUT ... I'm alive and I have passions and dreams!

I contacted Reg Athwal to thank him for inspiring me again. He responded and gave me some great advice…

“Keep sharing your dream with people and your dream team will come together, but put the past in the past and let it go now, the present is all that matters!”

Sometimes it has to be spelt out to you. Sometimes you need to be taken and given a good shaking. Sometimes you’ll even get the message.

I’ve got the message Reg! The past is in the past. The lessons have been learnt and recorded. The present is what matters now … and that is what I am focusing on from this moment forward.

If you would like to work with me ... if you want to share your passion with me ... then why not contact me.

Regards

Jim Tuffin