Ford’s “$120K mechanic shortage” isn’t a labor crisis—it’s a mirage. This episode blows past the headline to expose how America devalued the trades, oversold college, and turned work into a gamble. The real shortage isn’t workers—it’s honesty about the system we built. | To keep up with what's happening now and next in the world of work - Subscribe to "The Recruiting Life" newsletter at https://jimstroud.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Ford’s “$120K mechanic shortage” isn’t a labor crisis—it’s a mirage. This episode blows past the headline to expose how America devalued the trades, oversold college, and turned work into a gamble. The real shortage isn’t workers—it’s honesty about the system we built. | To keep up with what's happening now and next in the world of work - Subscribe to "The Recruiting Life" newsletter at https://jimstroud.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ford’s “$120K mechanic shortage” isn’t a labor crisis—it’s a mirage. This episode blows past the headline to expose how America devalued the trades, oversold college, and turned work into a gamble. The real shortage isn’t workers—it’s honesty about the system we built. | To keep up with what's happening now and next in the world of work - Subscribe to "The Recruiting Life" newsletter at https://jimstroud.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices" rel="noopener noreferrer">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

The $120K Mirage

The Jim Stroud Podcast is part therapy, part exposé—and grounded in reality. Some weeks, I talk with insiders. Most weeks, I say the quiet parts out loud—no filter, no fluff, and no patience for corporate nonsense.

This isn’t career advice theater. It’s the raw, unvarnished side of work: AI misfires, hiring hypocrisy, culture scams, and why the future of work increasingly feels like a Black Mirror episode in business casual.

This podcast is for leaders, recruiters, advisors, and job seekers who want unfiltered clarity about what’s actually happening at work—and what it means for the decisions ahead. It’s not for anyone looking for motivational fluff, corporate talking points, or sanitized “best practices.”

Because what’s coming for your job, your company, and your peace of mind won’t show up in an all-hands meeting.
But you’ll hear it here.


This podcast is brought to you in part by The Recruiting Life newsletter—clarity on what’s happening now and next in the world of work. Subscribe at 👉 https://jimstroud.beehiiv.com

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The Jim Stroud Podcast is part therapy, part exposé—and grounded in reality. Some weeks, I talk with insiders. Most weeks, I say the quiet parts out loud—no filter, no fluff, and no patience for corporate nonsense. This isn’t career advice theater. It’s the raw, unvarnished side of work: AI misfires, hiring hypocrisy, culture scams, and why the future of work increasingly feels like a Black Mirror episode in business casual. This podcast is for leaders, recruiters, advisors, and job seekers who want unfiltered clarity about what’s actually happening at work—and what it means for the decisions ahead. It’s not for anyone looking for motivational fluff, corporate talking points, or sanitized “best practices.” Because what’s coming for your job, your company, and your peace of mind won’t show up in an all-hands meeting. But you’ll hear it here. This podcast is brought to you in part by The Recruiting Life newsletter—clarity on what’s happening now and next in the world of work. Subscribe at 👉 https://jimstroud.beehiiv.com

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