“I do this because I am unemployable.”

He said it with a look on his face that made me believe him, without a hint of ambiguity.

“Yes, you are.” He knew I wasn’t insulting him. We were merely confirming a truth – a truth about him and millions of others like him.

We were sitting at his kitchen table yesterday and he was telling me what he does to generate income.

I don’t need to tell you who he is or what he does. This is not the important part of this story. Our takeaway here is how he has parlayed a set of skills into income generation for his family.

I asked to interview him for background on a course I am teaching, which would also give me insight into formulas for finding money-making opportunities.

He invited me into his home to tell me about his role as the king of his own media brand. He’s on cable TV, mobile apps and streaming platforms.
He writes books. He does appearances for his networks. He has speaking engagements. He flew 65,000 miles last year across the continents.

He does all of this because he says he is unemployable. How can someone who is king of a media empire use that word?

“I probably have about 10 jobs.” he said. “I love what I do, I’m good at it, and I can do this for a long time.”

What makes him an archetype, a human template for millions of others who are going to follow him, is one simple truth – he’s too old to get a job at a company. No one would hire him, in spite of the fact that he is a subject matter expert in his field, an accomplished and successful entrepreneur.
And he’s not “old”, that’s the hilarious part. He’s not a kid, but the definition of that word…old…has changed over the past 30 years.

No company would want him. But it hasn’t stopped him from being awesome.

My guy is really good at knowing who he is, what he’s good at, and what he can contribute to the “network.”

His contributions have value. So do yours. So do mine.

In a world increasingly managed by the 1% and global corporations, the way we are going to regain power will be to have each other’s backs.

We only have each other.

Aren’t you tired of being someone’s bitch? How much fun is it to be the bitch of some useless “regional manager?” How fulfilling is it to make your idiot boss look good and never be thanked for it?

The future of work is you calling the shots. You can do it now, and it’s going to be great…I’ll help you get there.

John Scott is the career services manager and instructor at the School of Multimedia Communications, Academy of Art University, San Francisco. @johnscottsf. 50+ ways to get out of the career rut: John’s latest book, “You. Employed.”