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The way we
look at jobs and employment is going to fundamentally change in the years ahead
on account of the rise and rise of artificial intelligence or AI. With more and
more job roles and functions typical of large organisations employing large
numbers of people being taken over by AI, there will be fewer and fewer jobs
and occupations that we have known in the traditional sense available to people
of employable age.
They will
perforce have to turn to solopreneurship in order to keep themselves gainfully
employed. In this AI dominated and driven future, people will need to learn to
develop skills that are in sync with AI and can, thereby, effectively leverage
the technology and obtain optimal benefits from it. The idea would be to make
an ally of AI and not a rival.
What will be the skills in
demand in this new age era of solopreneurship?
1.
Superior Cognitive Skills
While AI
can process humongous amounts of data and discern patters, it does not possess
the ability to take a nuanced and out of the box view of intractable and highly
complex problems and situations. This is where a human brain can step up to the
plate and help make strategic decisions even when there is incomplete or
inadequate information available. The ability to be both creative and
innovative can help humans think about ever new possibilities and scenarios
leading to the development of whole new original concepts.
Solopreneurs with the ability to
come up with a clear and farsighted vision for their business ventures and
adapt their strategies to an environment that has been shaped by rapid and
incremental advancements in AI will thrive.
2.
Interpersonal and Emotional Skills
AI for all its abilities and capabilities will never be able to foster
genuine connections with clients, vendors. suppliers and others thereby
hampering the building of trust and the likelihood of meaningful
collaborations. Active listening, empathy and the ability to engage
in persuasive communication will give solopreneurs a leg up in terms of
building long term relationships and managing complex collaborations.
Humans,
unlike AI possess EQ which will give them the edge over the latter when it
comes to things like rapport building and conflict resolution.
3.
Leadership
Even though
solopreneurship will likely be the norm in the not so distant future,
individuals will need to be self-motivated and to that extent will need to
learn to lead themselves effectively in order to perform effectively. At the
same time, they will need to learn to be excellent at motivating and inspiring
the people they need to deal with. These range from collaborators and clients
to their AI powered virtual assistants!
4.
AI Skills
Don’t walk
into the rain without an umbrella! That does not mean that everybody has to
become an AI nerd. One does, however, need to understand how one can leverage AI
for better business opportunities and growth. It would, also make eminent sense
to become proficient at using AI tools that can help automate processes, carry
out data analysis, and help with marketing as well as customer service.
Look out for the future-it
is solopreneurship in era of AI
Most jobs
and professions that we see around us like those of teachers, lawyers,
engineers, coders, writers, architects, accountants and even doctors are going
to see a gradual and incremental takeover by AI. This may be good for society
or bad- we don’t know yet. But the movement in that direction is inevitable and
inexorable.
In a
scenario like that solopreneurship is likely to take the place of the jobs that
form the bulk of the middle class white collar employment that a large number
of us aspire to. We need to make our young people prepare themselves for the
future that is coming.
