Thank you for being honest with the kid, as a lot of folks exploit peoples inexperience for financial reasons as policy. In general, there are a few assertions

Thank you for being honest with the kid, as a lot of folks exploit peoples inexperience for financial reasons as policy. In general, there are a few assertions people make: A. The industry always changes B. The industry always follows the same trend Both are incorrect, but rather the truth floats somewhere between the two. A better question is often "what skills will offer long-term fiscal utility?" The answer to that utility question exposes the dirty side of the tech industry: 1. is the concept an orthogonal theme from purely Academic or Commercial Marketers? If Yes, than the probability it will still be around in 2 years is vanishingly small. 2. is the role occupied by Senior staff over 35 at more than 6 firms? No, than the probability of redundancy increases exponentially with time, as the skill demand is under artificial supply manipulation due to wage suppression, regulatory capture, and or tax incentives refactored into a subsidy. 3. what is the average ratio of staff with the skill still present at firms over 3 years? if less than 5%, than the roles still fall under churn-and-burn economics, and at some point the stock valuation bump will need ritualistic HR sacrifices. if over 90%, than a roles true value is marginal, and will be bid down in pay over time. 4. An "award for the worlds smartest sucker" is not a certificate that will hold value. Anyone that claims they know what will happen in 5 years is a fool selling something like nonsense vendor certifications, media packages, and or political rhetoric (STEM etc.) 5. Does the skill require physical presence? No, than the law of outsourcing bids down skill value over time due to irrational competitors. 6. Integrity in whatever you choose to do is important regardless of the role. For example, someone using an emotionally charged subject in an 72% LLM generated article will antagonize the wrong people eventually. 7. Copying what others do... often means one will land in second place... or worse. Good luck out there, =)