When did perception of skilled trades take a wrong turn?

It wasn’t always true that University was perceived as the better option over College and Apprenticeships.

In a new campaign, Mike Rowe (mikerowe.com) shines a light on an old university marketing poster from the 1970s with a ‘Work Smart, Not Hard’ slogan. He has redesigned the slogan to say ‘Work Smart AND Hard’. Those posters were found in guidance counselor offices in many high schools unfortunately, so this has become a part of our culture over time. Mike says the outcome of this perception best on his website:

“The evidence suggests we’ve taken some very bad advice, and tried to separate hard work from success. Consequently, we’ve become profoundly disconnected from a critical part of our workforce. The skilled part. The part that keeps the lights on.”

There is competition between post-secondary schools for enrollment, and in communities where influencers – whether it be parents, teachers, or peers – share negative thoughts on College, they don’t stand a chance against the Universities.

Mike had a featured ‘TED Talk’ about his work on the show Dirty Jobs on the Discovery Channel. He spoke about how media tend to portray skilled workers as negative stereotypes who hate their jobs, when in reality, many people who work in a skilled or technical career are some of the happiest people because they enjoy what they do and take great pride in their work.

When speaking to a group at a recent SkillsUSA conference, Mike said,

“Not only do you guys get it, not only do you have the talent, not only do you have the will to make for yourselves and for your families, but I’m calling on you to go further. Go out into the world, be an ambassador for work. Spread the kind of advice that actually matters, makes a difference. Have fun at what you do.”

It is up to all of us to reach as many people as we can to educate them on the facts. They need to know the importance and need for encouragement and quality training in skilled trades.