Marvin Ellison didn't start in a plush chair with a view of the Charlotte skyline. He started at the front door of a Target, making $4.35 an hour as a security guard. That’s probably why people actually listen when the Lowe’s CEO gives young workers advice. He isn't just reciting a HR handbook; he’s talking about how he survived a career where he was passed over for promotions ten different times.
Recently, Ellison has been making waves with a message that sounds almost heretical in a world obsessed with tech and "digital nomads." He’s telling Gen Z and the rising Gen Alpha to stay away from the corporate office.
Wait, what?
Essentially, he’s arguing that the traditional climb toward a middle-management desk is a fast track to being replaced by an algorithm.
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The "Cash Register" Rule for an AI World
Speaking at the Business Roundtable’s CEO Workforce Forum in Washington, D.C., Ellison dropped a line that caught everyone off guard: "Stay as close to the cash register as you can."
He isn't literally telling every college grad to go be a cashier. It’s a metaphor. In Ellison’s view, if you’re tucked away in a corporate headquarters doing data entry or mid-level analysis, you’re in the "danger zone" for AI displacement.
The closer you are to the customer—the person actually handing over the money—the more indispensable you are. AI might be able to write a marketing email, but it can’t look a frustrated homeowner in the eye and solve a complex renovation crisis on the fly.
"AI isn't going to fix a hole in your roof," Ellison famously noted. It won't stop a water heater from leaking or rewire a kitchen. This is why he is such a massive advocate for the skilled trades. While the white-collar world is panicking about ChatGPT, the plumber and the electrician are just getting more expensive and more in demand.
Take the Jobs Nobody Else Wants
If you look at Ellison’s resume, there’s a weird pattern. In almost every major role he’s taken over the last 25 years, he replaced someone who was fired or forced out.
He calls this taking the "tough assignments."
Most young workers want the "clean" jobs—the ones with the clear path and the established processes. Ellison says that’s a mistake. If you want to stand out when you don’t have an Ivy League degree or a "sponsor" in the C-suite, you have to run toward the fire.
He suggests looking for the projects that are seen as high-risk or messy. When you turn around a failing department, people notice. It creates a "mettle" that you just don't get by coasting in a high-performing team. For Ellison, "high risk" equals "high reward."
The "One Level Above" Dressing Rule
Here’s a bit of old-school advice that Ellison still swears by: dress one level above your current title.
He tells a story about his time at the University of Memphis. He was working five different jobs—janitor, truck driver, convenience store clerk—to pay for school. He used to carry a briefcase on campus.
People laughed. They asked him what was in the briefcase.
"Nothing," he’d say. "But it's about the image of what I want to be."
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It sounds a bit "fake it 'til you make it," but Ellison views it as a psychological signal to yourself and the world. It’s about projecting where you're going, not just where you are. He’s often said that you shouldn't dress like your peers; you should dress like your boss.
Why Resilience is the Only Real Skill
Honestly, the most refreshing part of the Lowe’s CEO young workers advice is his honesty about failure. He doesn't pretend it was a straight line to the top.
He was passed over for 10 promotions.
Think about that for a second. Most people would quit after three or four. They’d assume the system is rigged or they just aren't good enough. Ellison argues that "resilience" is the hallmark of his career.
He was the middle child of seven, born to sharecroppers in Tennessee. His family didn't even have indoor plumbing until he was six. When he got to college, a professor told him he was fundamentally unprepared for the workload because of his rural high school education.
Instead of folding, he leaned into the "grind." It took him five and a half years to graduate because he had to work so much. This "insatiable appetite to learn" is what he pushes now. He tells young people to ignore the "dream killers" who try to limit their potential based on their current surroundings.
Actionable Steps for Your Career
If you’re trying to apply this to your own life in 2026, here is how you actually do it:
- Audit Your "Distance from the Cash": Look at your current job. If the company’s revenue stopped tomorrow, how close would you be to the effort to get it back? If you're five layers removed from the customer, start looking for lateral moves that put you in the field.
- Volunteer for the "Mess": Is there a project everyone is avoiding because it looks like a disaster? That’s your ticket. Ask to lead it. Even if you don't fully succeed, the reputation for having "the courage to speak up" and take the hit is more valuable than being a "safe" employee.
- Invest in "Human-Only" Skills: Whether it’s a skilled trade (plumbing, electrical) or high-level negotiation and leadership, focus on things that require physical presence and emotional intelligence.
- Don't Over-Optimize for Comfort: Ellison’s journey was built on discomfort. If your job feels too easy, you probably aren't growing.
The "corner office" might have been the dream for the last fifty years, but in the current economy, the workshop or the sales floor might actually be the safer bet. Ellison’s life is proof that you don't need a perfect pedigree to run a Fortune 500 company—you just need the willingness to do the work that everyone else is trying to avoid.
Next Steps for Your Career Growth
Start by identifying one "tough assignment" in your current workplace that has been neglected. Draft a brief proposal on how you would tackle the most difficult aspect of that project and present it to your manager. This immediately differentiates you from peers who are simply waiting for instructions. Simultaneously, look at your daily tasks and identify which ones are most likely to be automated in the next 24 months; begin shifting your focus toward the "high-touch" client interactions or physical problem-solving tasks that AI cannot replicate. Finally, commit to a "lateral move" if it offers the chance to learn a fundamental part of the business you don't currently understand, such as sales or operations, even if it doesn't come with an immediate pay raise.