Podcast Ep 314: Conor Lynch’s new book Learn Earn Own argues workers must build multiple income streams as traditional career paths falter
The traditional career ladder is crumbling, and workers need to build portfolios of skills and income streams rather than depend on single employers, according to Dublin-based digital entrepreneur Conor Lynch.
Lynch’s book Learn Earn Own arrives as graduate and junior positions have fallen by about 32% since late 2022, contributing to widespread career anxiety among young professionals. His central thesis challenges decades of conventional wisdom about linear career progression.
“Always remember that jobs are temporary and assets are forever”
“The future of work is not a job. It is a portfolio,” Lynch explains. “This is not about quitting your job. It is about not letting your job be your only plan. Jobs are temporary and assets are forever.”
From career ladder to assets ladder
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Lynch’s framework emerged from reflecting on his own non-traditional career path during the pandemic lockdowns, shortly after selling his digital agency Connector to Granite Digital for an undisclosed sum. Having built the company from a side project into a seven-figure business, he began interviewing others about their career journeys.
“Around the time of the lockdowns, I started looking into careers and interviewing people about their careers,” Lynch recalls. “I started seeing patterns developing where people move from job to a side hustle and then into a business. Very quickly I could see that the career ladder was still the main model for careers, and it was very linear. That wasn’t what I was seeing at all.”
The patterns he observed didn’t match established career guidance. “There was no real model for people to help them understand that you can do multiple things. You don’t need to be consigned to one thing, one job at a time, one path, one ladder.”
Personal brand as primary asset
Lynch identifies personal branding as the most accessible starting point for building career assets. “I think the primary career asset that people should think about is their personal brand. That’s the easiest and most accessible,” he says.
His advice centres on ownership rather than dependency on platforms. “Everyone should have an online home. Your online home is not your page on LinkedIn – that’s rented territory. Everyone should have their own piece of property on the internet. That’s their domain name, having a professional email address that’s not Gmail.”
The approach reflects lessons learned during his early career. “Over 20 years ago, I saw the internet as the mechanism by which anybody can create anything and own something. Even if it’s a TikTok page or LinkedIn page or your own website, it moves your mind into ownership.”
Surviving the AI storm
The timing of Lynch’s book coincides with growing concerns about artificial intelligence displacing traditional graduate roles. “One statistic shows that the number of graduate roles are down by a third since the advent of ChatGPT,” he notes.
Rather than waiting for opportunities, Lynch advocates proactive skill development. “If you can’t get a job, just crack on and do a learning project. Figure out what to learn, start playing with AI, start playing with automation, experiment with the tools and the work you’d like to get.”
This philosophy extends to his hiring practices. “I’ve employed people without degrees because they had amazing skills. If you’re not getting that first step on the ladder, just create your own ladder.”
“Learn, Earn & Own” combines theoretical frameworks with practical implementation tools. The book includes templates, scorecards, and AI prompts, alongside a companion web application that generates personalised career path options based on uploaded CVs and stated goals.
“What I’m hearing back from reviewers is that it’s very practical, not preachy, and encouraging,” Lynch says. The book has received an average rating of 4.8 out of five stars, with readers particularly valuing what one grandfather described as “career coaching in a box” when sharing the tools with his grandson.
Lynch wrote and designed the entire book using accessible tools like Canva, embodying his message about democratised creation. “The tools are getting so much easier than they used to be. Canva is very easy to use. There are tools that are infinitely simpler for a non-expert than 10 years ago.”
Broader economic implications
Lynch’s framework reflects wider shifts in employment patterns. He cites research from the OECD and LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman suggesting that 50% of workers could be independent workers or freelancers by 2030 in America.
“There are more people on the outside of companies managing their careers and looking for clients,” he observes. “The book is for people like them – how do I manage my career? But also, how do people collaborate better together when so many are on the outside?”
His approach deliberately blurs traditional boundaries between employment and self-employment. “One of the big things I want to do is bring employment and self-employment together into one career map. You can actually do both, you probably will do both, and move between both.”
Lynch sees his current work as part of a broader mission to help people build various types of assets. “There are real assets, financial assets, business assets, and now the book is about career assets. I want to help people, individuals, families, even organizations, to create and build assets.”
The entrepreneur plans to expand beyond the book through workshops and digital tools, continuing his practice of “learning in public” – a concept he advocates for others seeking to build their professional profiles.
As traditional career certainties continue to erode, Lynch’s message resonates with workers seeking greater control over their professional destinies. His final advice encapsulates the shift he believes is already underway: “Always remember that jobs are temporary and assets are forever.”
Learn, Earn & Own is available through Amazon in paperback and Kindle formats, with an audiobook in development.
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Listen to the ThinkBusiness Podcast for business insights and inspiration. All episodes are here. You can also listen to the Podcast on:
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