Where do jobs come from?

It must be more than a coincidence that there are almost enough jobs for everyone–a billion more jobs on Earth than there were a generation ago.

Unemployment is debilitating and a real problem, but even high unemployment in many countries still means that most people have a job. Many times, it’s a job that didn’t exist before they had it.

Jobs exist because people are productive. When their productivity produces more value than the money they are paid, someone keeps the difference. Actually, two someones: The customer gets some of the benefit and the organizer of the job gets the rest.

Viewed this way, it’s easy to see that jobs aren’t a bureaucratic niche to be filled. They’re the opportunity for value to be created.

Find the value and you will find the job.