The future belongs to those who develop the right skills. The problem is that we may be developing the wrong ones.

Morgan Housel says there are two categories of skills - expiring and permanent. 

Expiring skills are the ones that are less important over time as technology improves. 

Permanent skills are the ones that were essential last century and will be essential for the next century.

We’re at an interesting point in time with the rapid development of AI. There’s a collective sense that there’s potential for a mass extinction event of skills. 

I started thinking about this because I’ve been having conversations with my teenage son about the classes he will be taking next year in high school. These conversations inevitably lead to what the future holds and the direction he’d like to take in life.

He wants to work on a commercial fishing boat and be a hunting guide after he’s done with high school. This is why, according to him, he doesn’t need to take calculus or chemistry. Instead, he wants to focus on classes in the trades - welding, carpentry, and workplace math. 

I think he’s on to something.

So instead of pursuing skills that could expire faster than expected, I’m encouraging him to pursue permanent skills that will serve him well regardless of the path he chooses.

Here’s a list of the permanent skills that I think are worth mastering:

1. Learning - The ability to learn is the foundational permanent skill. Absorbing new information, making connections between concepts and finding mentors are fundamental skills.
2. Clear communication - If you become skilled at writing, speaking and listening you will have endless opportunities in your career and deeper relationships in your personal life.
3. Decision making - As our options increase as a society our ability to make decisions has decreased. Being an effective decision-maker will set you apart. 
4. Empathy - This is learned by example and seeing it lived out by others around you.
5. Deep relationships - We’re connected with more people than ever and yet have never felt more lonely. Being able to form and maintain deep relationships will be a superpower in the future.
6. Self-awareness - Developing self-awareness is a lifelong process that is shaped by experience, introspection and feedback from others. 
7. Self-discipline - The ability to hold yourself accountable, live up to your values and pursue your goals consistently.
8. Grit - Perseverance through the struggles and the challenges while also being able to determine when you should continue and when you should quit. Grit has to be coupled with good decision-making.
9. Fitness - This is more of a habit than a skill. Physical fitness will make life easier.

If my son can develop these skills he will be successful at whatever path he chooses.