The Future of Statistics

Over the years I've often been asked by beginners where they should start, what they should do first, and which parts of statistics they should prioritise to get them to where they want to be (which is usually a higher paid job).
Now, as I'm almost completely self-taught, apart from the few intensely boring lectures that I slept through many years ago (and I now wished that I'd stayed awake for), I don't really consider myself an authority in where one should get started, and I struggle to answer this question with any great conviction.
Sure, I have some thoughts about this subject, but they are coloured by my own experiences, which are mainly limited to certain types of analysis in specific industries (mostly medical statistics).
So I thought I'd reach out to some of our statistics friends to see what they can bring to the party. This blog post is the result.