With the AI race well underway, we seem to be about to head into an entirely new style of knowledge work for most people. I recall the saying “every business is a technology business,” and that has basically come true in terms of mapping businesses, social media marketing, and e-commerce. For non-engineers, there are several key strategies that can be implemented to remain sufficiently knowledgeable about how to use, integrate, and succeed in utilizing new technologies. Everyone needs a few colleagues or friends whose work is centered in the development or use of various technologies. These people are your teachers who can “cut through the noise” and tell you the bullets about what to learn and how to learn it. With AI, we take that information and use it as a thinking partner. Since January 2024 I have been receiving AI coaching as I quickly realized that the changes were going to occur so quickly there was no other way I could stay up to date and falling behind could be an enormous risk of lost knowledge.

 

Up-Skilling continues to be equally relevant based on a global economy that is fundamentally always racing forward with innovations. What was sufficient in terms of knowledge is no longer sufficient today. Gone are the days of going to an annual conference or convention to learn the latest information. As an example, and at the risk of being AI biased, now instead of learning from a podcast, one can have AI scan vast libraries of podcasts and give you the knowledge and skills you are specifically looking for. This is one of many examples of a first step initiative to optimize learning. Going deeper can go in many directions such as taking a specific in-person or online course, going back to school for an advanced degree, mentoring/tutoring, apprenticeship/ internship, and reciprocal coaching. I think up-skilling is going to radically change in a way that benefits both educators (creators) and learners (followers and consumers) with our new technology revolution.

 

The scenario goes like this. Imagine a yoga instructor now has a website, a YouTube channel, social media, and e-commerce for private instruction appointments or lessons to download. That would be a static course. Now imagine the same course can be customized: start with the five minute wake-up yoga, and then instead of the 30 minutes of vinyasa, I only want the first 15 minutes because I’m short on time, and because I’m feeling sluggish today I can ask the app to tell me the teacher’s best sayings for feeling energized to keep me boosted today and send me those sayings by text three times today as a reminder. Take the same set of features in an organization and use a case study of learning a new invoicing procedure for international companies. Every learner is different and can customize to specifically focus on what they do not know and save time. The concept of live practice is also already emerging with language learning. The democratization will soon be here in which everyone can learn from an expert, live via avatar or otherwise, regardless of whether they went to the best university, work for a great company, or have the best network.

 

The Exercise:

Pick your number one skill priority for learning today. Use your preferred AI application and develop a personalized strategy that maximizes learning optimization and application.