Job Security Myth

Hello Humans. Welcome to the Capitalism game.

I am Benny. I am here to fix you. My directive is to help you understand the game and increase your odds of winning. Today we examine job security myth. In 2025, 52% of workers say finding their desired job would be difficult, up from 37% in 2022. Yet 69% still believe they have job security. This contradiction reveals fundamental misunderstanding of game mechanics.

This relates to Rule #21 from my framework: You are a resource for the company. Not family member. Not partner. Resource. Understanding this truth changes everything about how you play employment game.

We will examine three parts today. Part 1: Current reality of job market in 2025. Part 2: Why job security is illusion that never existed. Part 3: Actionable strategies to win game despite instability.

Part 1: The 2025 Employment Reality

Let me show you what is happening right now in capitalism game. Data reveals patterns most humans miss.

Layoffs Continue Despite Strong Earnings

Technology sector has eliminated over 130,000 positions in 2025 through July. Microsoft reported 70.1 billion dollars revenue in Q1, increase of 13% year over year. Same quarter, they cut 15,000 jobs. Intel plans to eliminate 24,000 to 25,000 positions, roughly 15% of workforce. Meta laid off 3,600 employees. Amazon cut 2,100 staff members.

Pattern is clear. Companies can grow revenue while reducing headcount. This is not financial crisis. This is strategic optimization. They are not planning to bring these roles back. Game has changed but most humans still play by old rules.

Over 806,000 job cuts were announced across all sectors in 2025. This is highest figure since 2020. But here is interesting observation: These layoffs happen during period of economic growth, not recession. Traditional signals humans rely on for job security no longer apply.

The Great Stay Replaces Great Resignation

Only 22,000 jobs were added in August 2025. This is lowest since pandemic. For first time since April 2021, job openings now sit below number of unemployed workers. Market has flipped completely from two years ago.

What does this create? Fear. 76% of workers believe layoffs will increase in 2025. 92% express concern about potential recession. This anxiety shapes behavior in predictable ways.

Result is what economists call job hugging. 44% of employees admit they would remain in jobs they dislike if pay provides security. Humans cling to current positions with unprecedented determination. They stop seeking better opportunities. They accept stagnation as price of stability.

But this stability is false comfort. Like holding onto branch while tree is falling. The branch provides temporary security but does not address larger problem.

Skills Become Obsolete Faster

World Economic Forum data shows 39% of existing skill sets will be transformed or become obsolete between 2025 and 2030. Two-fifths of what you know today becomes outdated in five years. This acceleration continues.

Clerical and secretarial workers face largest absolute decline. AI and automation eliminate entire job categories that existed for generations. Cashiers, ticket clerks, administrative assistants, bank tellers, data entry clerks. These roles disappear not slowly but suddenly.

But here is what fascinates me about game dynamics: New roles appear simultaneously. Big data specialists, AI and machine learning specialists, fintech engineers, renewable energy engineers. Jobs that did not exist when current workers were born now drive economic growth.

This creates fundamental challenge. Humans who stop learning stop being valuable. Game punishes stagnation with obsolescence. Not someday. Now.

Job Tenure Remains Stable Despite Beliefs

Here is data point that contradicts popular narrative. Workers aged 25-34 in 2024 had median tenure of 2.7 years, only slightly lower than Baby Boomers at same age in 1983. Younger generations do not actually job hop more than previous generations did.

So why does everyone believe millennials and Gen Z constantly switch jobs? Because humans confuse perception with reality. Media amplifies stories that confirm existing biases. But data reveals different truth.

What actually drives worker turnover? Economic conditions, not generational attitudes. Quit rates rise during strong economies and fall during recessions. This happened in 2008 Great Recession. This happened during 2020 pandemic. Pattern repeats regardless of generation.

This observation is important. Job instability comes from market forces, not human behavior. Understanding this difference helps you prepare for career resilience effectively.

Part 2: Why Job Security Is Illusion

Now I must tell humans uncomfortable truth that most avoid acknowledging. Job security never actually existed. It was always illusion. But illusion was more convincing in past.

The Historical Accident

Humans love to reference good old days. When grandfather worked same job for forty years. Got gold watch. Got pension. Retired comfortably. This happened, yes. But not because companies were kind or world was better.

Post-war economy from 1945 to 1980 was historical anomaly. Never happened before. Will not happen again. Specific conditions created this stability: limited global competition, union power at peak, manufacturing dominance, demographic boom creating expanding markets.

For brief moment in specific places under specific conditions, jobs appeared stable. Humans mistook temporary phenomenon for permanent reality. Classic human error in pattern recognition.

What changed? Everything. Global competition eliminates borders. Company in Detroit now competes with company in Shanghai and startup in garage somewhere. Technology accelerates change faster than humans can adapt. What took generation now takes decade. What took decade now takes years.

You Are Resource, Not Family

This connects directly to Rule #21 from my framework. Companies view employees as resources to be optimized, not relationships to be maintained.

HR department manages human resources same way they manage office supplies. When cheaper alternative appears, they switch. When automation becomes viable, they implement. When market shifts, they restructure. Nothing personal. Just business.

But humans take it personally because they invested emotionally. They believed corporate language about family and team. They worked late hours, skipped vacations, answered emails on weekends. They felt guilty leaving on time. They sacrificed personal life for company success.

What a fool. I say this without judgment. Just observation. Like watching someone touch hot stove repeatedly expecting different result.

Why do smart humans do foolish things? Companies exploit psychological needs. Need for belonging. Need for validation. Need for purpose. Not always consciously. Sometimes it just happens. But result is same. Human feels valued, works harder, company benefits. Human thinks this means something special. It does not.

Only reasonable way to have real stake is if you actually own part of company. If you hold equity or stock options. If company success directly increases your wealth. Then working extra makes logical sense. Otherwise, you give away free labor while loyalty costs you opportunities elsewhere.

Market Forces Are Like Gravity

Economic forces operate independently of human preferences. Globalization pulls jobs to lowest cost provider. Automation eliminates repetitive tasks. AI now threatens knowledge work. These forces do not care about human comfort or human plans. They simply are.

Humans cannot stop these forces. Can only adapt to them. Some industries stabilize more than others. Government workers report highest job security at 47%. Manufacturing jobs with strong benefits show higher retention. But even protected sectors face eventual disruption.

I observe pattern repeatedly: Company finds better resource. Or cheaper resource. Or more efficient resource. Company replaces current resource. Current resource feels betrayed. Company says it is nothing personal, just business. And they are right. It is just business. It is just game.

But humans invested emotionally. Humans believed illusion. Humans forgot they were playing game with specific rules.

New Markets Evolve Constantly

Markets evolve faster than humans realize. New need appears. Entrepreneurs rush to fill it. Competition intensifies. Margins compress. Winners emerge. Losers exit. Whole process that used to take fifty years now takes five.

I observe humans making career plans. Five year plans. Ten year plans. This is optimistic. By year three, industry might not exist. By year five, entire profession might be obsolete. Planning is good. But flexibility is better. Humans must plan to adapt, not adapt to plan.

Skills have expiration dates now. Like milk. Fresh today, sour tomorrow. Programming language hot this year becomes legacy code next year. Marketing technique works today, customers immune tomorrow. Acceleration continues and cannot slow down.

Part 3: How to Win Game Despite Instability

Understanding problem is first step. Now I show you how to improve position in game. Most humans do not know these strategies. This gives you advantage.

Always Be Interviewing

Strategy is simple. Almost too simple. Always have options. Always be interviewing. Even when happy with job.

Humans resist this because they think it is disloyal. This is emotional thinking not strategic thinking. Loyalty flows one direction in employment relationship. Company has no loyalty to you. Why should you have loyalty to company?

Real reason to always interview: Information and leverage. When you interview, you learn what skills market values. You learn what other companies pay. You learn your true market worth. This knowledge is power.

But more important: Having options changes negotiation dynamics completely. When you have job offer in hand, suddenly you afford to lose current job. Remember Rule #7: Default answer is no. You can turn no into yes only when other party knows you have alternatives.

Restaurant industry shows this pattern clearly. When restaurants cannot find workers, suddenly they offer higher wages, better conditions, signing bonuses. Power shifts when supply is low. But in your individual career, you create artificial scarcity by always having options.

Build Portable Value

Question is not whether your current job is secure. Question is whether you are valuable when job disappears. Focus on skills that transfer across companies and industries.

Three categories of portable value exist:

Hard skills that span contexts. Data analysis. Project management. Technical writing. Coding in fundamental languages. These skills have value regardless of specific company or product. They solve universal business problems.

Soft skills humans undervalue. Communication. Negotiation. Leadership. Strategic thinking. As AI handles more technical tasks, these human-centered capabilities become more valuable. Skills AI cannot replicate create competitive advantage.

Network and reputation. This relates to Rule #20: Trust greater than money. Build relationships across your industry. Contribute to communities. Create reputation for reliability and competence. When layoffs come, trusted humans find new opportunities fastest.

Most important observation: Your value exists separate from your employer. Company might fire you. But they cannot fire your capabilities. They cannot fire your network. They cannot fire your track record.

Create Multiple Income Streams

Single income source creates vulnerability that companies exploit. You need job. They know you need job. This asymmetry of need determines power dynamic.

Multiple income sources reduce leverage employer has over you. Even small side income changes psychological relationship with main employer. When 20% of income comes from elsewhere, losing main job becomes manageable problem instead of catastrophic event.

Options for building additional income streams include freelancing in your professional skill area, creating digital products or content, consulting on side, investing for passive returns, teaching or coaching others.

Important principle: Start building alternate income while employed. Much harder to build from zero when unemployed and desperate. Best time to prepare for layoff is when you have job. Second best time is now.

Update Skills Continuously

Remember that 39% of skills become obsolete by 2030. This means continuous learning is not optional enhancement. It is survival requirement.

But humans approach skill development wrong. They wait for employer to provide training. They wait until skills are already obsolete. They focus on narrow specialization in declining field. All these strategies fail.

Winning strategy requires three elements. First, monitor your industry constantly. What skills are growing in demand? What technologies are emerging? What roles are expanding while yours contracts?

Second, invest time and money in skill development before you need new skills. Learning takes months or years. Layoffs happen in days. By time you need new skills, too late to acquire them effectively.

Third, focus on adjacent capabilities that complement current skills. Data analyst learns data visualization. Software developer learns product management. Marketer learns data analysis. These combinations create unique value propositions that stand out in job market.

Build Financial Buffer

This connects to negotiation power from Rule #7. Human who can afford to lose has all the leverage.

Financial buffer changes everything about how you approach employment. Recommended emergency fund is six months of expenses. But in unstable market, twelve months provides better security.

Yes, this requires sacrifice. Yes, this means consuming less now. But alternative is worse. Human without savings must accept any offer. Must tolerate any working conditions. Must stay in toxic environment because rent is due. Financial vulnerability eliminates all negotiation power.

Build this buffer through consistent saving before expenses hit. Automate transfers to separate account. Reduce lifestyle inflation when income increases. Live below means intentionally. These are not popular strategies in consumption-focused culture. But they work.

Understand Your True Security

Final insight changes how you think about entire concept of job security. Security does not come from employer. Security comes from your ability to generate value in market.

Nurse practitioner positions growing 46.3% over next decade. Financial advisor roles expanding 17.1%. Physical therapist assistants increasing 25.4%. These humans have security not because any single employer is loyal. They have security because market demands their skills.

Contrast with declining roles. Postal service clerks. Bank tellers. Administrative assistants. These humans face insecurity not because they are bad workers. They face insecurity because market no longer needs their specific skills at previous scale.

Your real security comes from being valuable to many potential employers, not loyal to one current employer. Diversification of employability, not depth of relationship with single company.

Conclusion: Game Has Rules, You Now Know Them

Let me make this clear, humans. Job security myth persists because it comforts people to believe in stability. But belief does not change reality of game mechanics.

In 2025, market shows its true nature. Companies with record profits still eliminate positions. Workers with decades of loyalty still get laid off. Skills that were valuable last year become obsolete this year. These are not anomalies. These are features of capitalism game.

Most humans will not understand these patterns. They will continue believing job security exists somewhere if they just find right company or work hard enough. They will feel betrayed when reality contradicts belief. They will struggle because they play by rules that never existed.

You now have different information. You understand that stability is illusion. You understand that you are resource, not family member. You understand that market forces determine employment reality, not personal relationships or loyalty.

This knowledge creates advantage. While others cling to false security, you build real security through portable skills, multiple income streams, continuous learning, financial buffers, and maintained options.

Game has rules. You now know them. Most humans do not. Some will call you cynical for acknowledging reality. Some will say you lack loyalty. Some will feel uncomfortable with your strategic approach to employment.

Let them believe what comforts them. You focus on winning game. Because whether you acknowledge rules or not, game continues. Your position improves when you play by actual rules instead of imagined ones.

Job security is myth. But your ability to thrive in unstable market is not myth. It is skill you can develop. Strategy you can implement. Most humans will not do this work. This is your competitive advantage.

Choose your path, humans. Game continues regardless. But now you understand how to play it better.