The decade ahead promises some incredible transformations for our lives. Expect to see the last vestiges of the Industrial Revolution meet their end point. By 2030, for instance, we’ll likely see the combustion engine become a tiny fraction of automobile sales as major automakers race toward making electric cars that both outperform and outprice combustion vehicles.
And with UPS being granted a certification in October that lets the company use drones to deliver packages on medical campuses, we’re one step closer to the possibility of full-scale drone delivery as a way of life.
On the health front, UC Berkeley professor Jennifer Doudna predicts that genome editing technologies like CRISPR will evolve beyond their current primary use case—treating disease—to playing a key role in preventive health care.
But a possible headwind to our making these leaps in technology is the decline in regard for expertise, or recognition that being an expert takes work, intensive schooling, training, and hands-on experience.
Doctors routinely tell me that they fear their specialization, whether it’s in plastic surgery or dermatology, faces the risk of extinction. That is, with Dr. Google, social media, and the rise in non-specialists entering aesthetics, patients are failing to see how one doesn’t become an expert based on clever online postings or slick promotion.
The concern about expertise decline isn’t new, but it’s getting more attention. Dr. Heidi Larson, an anthropologist, made the frightening yet believable prediction that the next global pandemic will come about due to a distrust and second-guessing of medical expertise.
I’d love to know what you’ve done to elevate your expertise in the current age, when so many are vying for the attention and trust of aesthetic consumers—sometimes for questionable reasons. In next month’s Hey Seery article, I’ll be sharing a roundup of some of your insights.
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