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Isk's Reviews > Free Agent Nation: The Future of Working for Yourself
Free Agent Nation: The Future of Working for Yourself
by
by
Interesting chapters: Chapter 15, 16. The rest is boring: uninteresting details, or obvious if you've given any thought to freelancing.
Might be good if you are new to or utterly bemused by freelancing; otherwise, not recommended (except perhaps the chapters mentioned above) -- just read the chapter summaries the author provides.
Interesting tidbits:
1/4 of workers in America are freelancers; 2/3 in California hold non-traditional jobs.
Most people find jobs through contacts; and 5/6 of those cases, the contacts are with people they don't know very well.
Starbucks as a free agent office center.
When Roosevelt established 65 as the standard U.S. retirement age, life expectancy was 63. Now 76.
School not mandatory until 1920s.
Home schooling illegal in most states in 1980.
1/10 kids are home-schooled.
Summary:
The rise of free agents (e.g., because easier for one person to operate a business; because prosperity -- long time since Great Depression! -- allows thinking of working as more than just a way to make money; because people care more about self-expression and independence than money). Older generation used to be loyal to their organizations/companies; no longer. Different kind of workday schedule for free agents. Free agent clubs to overcome loneliness, exchange advice, offer support. More fluid/horizontal organization chart for free agents. Economic infrastructure for free agents (e.g., copy and printing shops, coffee shops, bookstores). Matchmakers and agents to help find jobs. Industrial economy separated work and family; free agent economy is rejoining them. Many laws (e.g., health insurance, taxes) are not beneficial to free agents. Temp slaves (dark side of free agency). More people will e-tire in the future -- instead of leaving work world, continue as free agents. Unschooling/self-teaching/apprenticeships in the free agent future. Typical workplace office will change into: private places for quiet work, and lodges for collaborative work/community. Free agents will raise capital the way companies do today -- borrowing money or selling stakes in their enterprise (i.e., equity); this will lead to new financial instruments, such as Free Agent bonds (like student loans, but with lower interest rates than credit cards) and Individual Public Offerings. America's free agents will become an electoral force.
Might be good if you are new to or utterly bemused by freelancing; otherwise, not recommended (except perhaps the chapters mentioned above) -- just read the chapter summaries the author provides.
Interesting tidbits:
1/4 of workers in America are freelancers; 2/3 in California hold non-traditional jobs.
Most people find jobs through contacts; and 5/6 of those cases, the contacts are with people they don't know very well.
Starbucks as a free agent office center.
When Roosevelt established 65 as the standard U.S. retirement age, life expectancy was 63. Now 76.
School not mandatory until 1920s.
Home schooling illegal in most states in 1980.
1/10 kids are home-schooled.
Summary:
The rise of free agents (e.g., because easier for one person to operate a business; because prosperity -- long time since Great Depression! -- allows thinking of working as more than just a way to make money; because people care more about self-expression and independence than money). Older generation used to be loyal to their organizations/companies; no longer. Different kind of workday schedule for free agents. Free agent clubs to overcome loneliness, exchange advice, offer support. More fluid/horizontal organization chart for free agents. Economic infrastructure for free agents (e.g., copy and printing shops, coffee shops, bookstores). Matchmakers and agents to help find jobs. Industrial economy separated work and family; free agent economy is rejoining them. Many laws (e.g., health insurance, taxes) are not beneficial to free agents. Temp slaves (dark side of free agency). More people will e-tire in the future -- instead of leaving work world, continue as free agents. Unschooling/self-teaching/apprenticeships in the free agent future. Typical workplace office will change into: private places for quiet work, and lodges for collaborative work/community. Free agents will raise capital the way companies do today -- borrowing money or selling stakes in their enterprise (i.e., equity); this will lead to new financial instruments, such as Free Agent bonds (like student loans, but with lower interest rates than credit cards) and Individual Public Offerings. America's free agents will become an electoral force.
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Reading Progress
Started Reading
December 27, 2008
– Shelved
December 27, 2008
–
Finished Reading
