Young tradespeople will be building our future world
Creativity, determination, endurance and talent on display at WorldSkills
It’s a competition where over a thousand young people — the best young professionals from across 72 countries and regions — compete in 45 skills and trades; that includes everything from bricklaying and web design, to jewelry making and cooking.
Just like the Olympics, it happens every two years. ( The last one was in Leipzig Germany. I was there with my son MJ — Mike Jr.) It’s an opportunity for young people from different continents, and different backgrounds in knowledge and expertise, to go head- to- head to show their creativity, determination, endurance and talent.
WorldSkills is the biggest skills competition in the world.
And after going to these competitions year after year, and watching these kids pour everything they’ve got into their craft and their skill, leaving it all on the competition floor, I’ve learned one thing: That all the best pros have passion for their skill. But more importantly, they have the drive and determination to take that passion and use it to deliver real results — results that help peoples’ lives, make things easier, make things better, faster; and that ultimately change industries and the world around them.
WorldSkills is about getting all the right people together to make a real change in the world — one that makes sense financially, economically, and technologically and, to be honest, emotionally. Why emotion? Because we’re building people, too.
WorldSkills gives the respect and recognition these professionals deserve for the work they do and their dedication. I’m talking 60- hour weeks — at least. And they don’t stop. If something doesn’t work, they try something else. They put in the time and the blood, sweat and tears to get the job done right; whatever it takes. To me, that deserves respect.
These are the people you want on the front lines when it comes to making our cars, building our homes, taking care of us at the hospital, building the machines we’ll use in the future to dream and build even better ways of making things work.
These are the professionals that will be thinking up new solutions to old problems — like alternative fuels and energy; sustainable building; smart construction in response to different building environments.
But they’re also the pros that will be dreaming up new and better ways of making our everyday lives better; from how we eat, sleep and move from point A to point B, to how we communicate with each other, and how we will create the world our kids will be living in, in the future.
We need the best people doing these jobs because it’s a huge responsibility. Period.
We need people with integrity, who value real work and determination, and who know how to deliver top results when it comes to their skilled work and professional training, to be at the forefront of skilled trades and technology, because these are the industries, and the people, that will literally be building and shaping the world in the future.
So if a country or an industry wants to thrive in the global economy, you better believe they’re supporting their trades. And you see it at these competitions. Because for some countries, if you win gold at WorldSkills that means you’re getting a house and a job at a top company — you basically have it made. Why? Because these countries know the true value of a skilled trade worker, and they’re getting the results they need by investing in them.
WorldSkills believes skills excellence is the driving force of a successful future. And I believe it, too. Watch Mike in his new series, Home Free airing Wednesdays at 9 p. m. ET/ PT on HGTV. For more inf ormation, visit makeitright. ca.