7 Great Jobs That Won't Be Lost to Technology

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Technology has been changing the way we work since the start of time. And you know what? We're still here — and still working. (See also: Robots Will Take These 5 Jobs Soon — Is One of Them Yours?)

If you're worried that robot workers will replace humans entirely someday, relax. These seven jobs that are here to stay.

1. Educator

Sure, technology has played a huge role in transforming the field of education. Self-directed, online learning is now available to just about anyone anywhere who has the interest and an internet connection. What hasn't changed is that people are still needed to put together curriculums sensitive to changing student needs, provide individualized tutoring and support, and challenge students to think critically about the material.

2. Coaches and Athletic Trainers

A 2013 study by Benedikt Frey and Michael Osborne called The Future of Employment lists athletic trainers as one of the career paths least likely to be impacted by technology. Why? Because no matter how realistic your Wii, engaging in competitive sports or fitness requires a more human approach to help motivate and maximize your progress.

3. Editors

Sure, the Associated Press and other major publications may be experimenting with computer-written news — but while churning out simple, formulaic stories might become robot's work soon, editing lengthy features, opinion pieces, or books won't. That's because editing isn't just about replacing misplaced commas — it's also about making writing flow more smoothly and read more enjoyably. Can you imagine a robo-editor trying to improve Shakespeare or Voltaire?

4. Therapists and Clergy

Those who help us heal our minds and bodies and guide our spiritual lives play a special and irreplaceable part in society. Therapists and clergy members provide compassionate, caring, and thoughtful help which cannot be adequately replicated by machines. Like anything requiring real kindness, wisdom, and generosity, these jobs are unlikely to be replaced by technology; unsurprisingly, The Future of Employment study cites these professions as particularly safe from robo-replacements.

5. Chef

George Jetson may have popped a few highly nutritious pills and called it a meal, but we are far from that scenario. Though technology is improving agriculture, food preparation methods, and impacting the cost and quality of food everywhere, the human touch is still what makes a gourmet meal truly special. Culinary ingenuity and a creative palate can't be supplanted by technology. With that reality firmly in place, chefs will always be needed.

6. Health Care Professionals

People are living longer thanks to modern medicine. People are also developing increasingly complex diseases and disorders as a result of living longer. These two facts are driving the need for doctors, nurses, and medical technicians. And if you think this idea goes away with the Baby Boomers, think again. Millennials are set to surpass the Baby Boomers in number this year, and the average life expectancy of Millennials is 84. With numbers and life expectancy on the rise, health care professionals will be highly sought after by everyone.

7. Actors and Artists

The Frey and Osborne study also showed a low likelihood that jobs for actors and other creative professionals would be outsourced to technology. After all, robots just aren't quite as convincing as Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie at feigning emotion (and they don't look as good on screen, either). Individuals in the creative professions are largely shielded from technological outsourcing because creativity is, in essence, the very last frontier of technology. And we will probably always want humans — not machines — acting out our human dreams and fears.

The bottom line is that human ingenuity never goes out of style and will never become obsolete. The human brain, and its creative capacity, isn't even fully understood — much less in danger of irrelevance. It is this very creative capacity that makes us human, and that creates the security that not everything can be better done by robots.

Any other jobs safe from robots? What about yours?

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Guest's picture
JD

Plumbers are probably safe. Can't unclog a drain from a tree root ingrowth remotely from another country, after all!