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I'm curious to discover how careers can evolve and thrive alongside advancing AI technology.
That's why I shared my "10 Commandments of Creativity" for the age of AI last week. And judging by the unsubscribe rate, it was my most controversial email to date. Read it here
In this ongoing series, I'll be sharing how to build resilience and enjoy what we do in a future shaped by AI? Plus, the latest essential AI developments.
Why we need to ask Better Questions
We've been living in the information age for decades, but AI makes that knowledge even more accessible, easier to find, automates research, and it comes with opinions too, just like an expert has.
You can use AI as a personal tutor and have it test you on things you are learning.
So with all this information and possibilities at your fingertips, what you choose to work on, what you choose to learn, becomes more important.
There's a difference between being busy and being productive. Efficiency vs Effectiveness.
Put simply, it's important to make sure you are working on the "right thing" rather than in "the right way".
Both are important, but only working on the "right thing" makes life a life-changing difference.
And to know if we are working on the right thing, we need to ask better questions, so here are two 'Better Questions" to ask:
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What’s a skill that can be picked up in 1 month that will have compounding returns the rest of your life? |
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I wondered if AI-powered 'Deep Research would find a definitive answer, so I asked:
What’s a skill, based on scientific research, that can be picked up in 1 month that will have compounding returns the rest of your life?
Gemini came back with a definitive answer: Mindfulness.
(BTW there's a cool little feature that you can now turn your reports into an audio summary a la NotebookLM)
Chat GPT hedged its bets:
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High-Leverage Skills to Learn in One Month
- Learning How to Learn
Master spaced repetition, active recall, interleaving, metacognitive reflection
Daily flashcards + weekly “teach-back” summaries
- Critical Thinking & Decision-Making
Study common cognitive biases; keep a decision journal
Use a daily “thinking pause” and pros/cons analysis before key choices
- Effective Communication & Active Listening
Practice one distraction-free, paraphrasing conversation each day
Refine clarity/brevity in emails or explanations weekly
- Emotional Intelligence & Self-Regulation
Keep a brief emotion journal; pause-and-reframe when stressed
Daily 10-min mindfulness or breathing exercise + perspective-taking habit
- Habit Formation & Time Management
Pick one keystone habit (e.g., 10-min exercise) anchored to a clear cue
Run a one-week time audit, then plan days with MIT (Top-3) tasks and Pomodoros
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Of course, this got me thinking, is this the best answer for me personally?
Well, now that AI has memory and records details about you, an interesting exercise in self-awareness is to ask what AI knows about you.
Give this simple prompt a try:
Knowing everything you know about me describe me in as much detail as you can. |
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Don't be afraid to dig a little deeper, follow up and ask for strengths, weaknesses, and hidden values.
Then try asking what is the most impactful thing specific to you that you can learn in the next month, based on your history.
AI devised a week-by-week plan for me to remove a limiting belief.
Let me know if AI uncovered anything surprising for you! |
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The Upcoming podcast with Marti Romances from Territory Studio will drop next week.
This one had loads of great insights - which I asked AI to turn into a one-page document - I'll hopefully get approval to share it next week so make sure you are subscribed: Podcast
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Google's Flow Studio is a video Generation platform for creatives
 I've been very impressed with the videos I've seen people creating with Google's new AI video generation studio called Flow. Having just completed Runways' Gen 48 challenge, I know first-hand the limitations of AI video, but from what I've seen of this so far (it's still rolling out in the US), for once the evidence backs up Google's claim;
"[Flow has] exceptional prompt adherence and stunning cinematic outputs that excel at physics and realism."
See for yourself in this thread:
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I created a podcast jingle using Suno's latest model 4.5, and I kind of love it.
Sometimes AI is like magic, and that's generally when you have no skills in that area - I'm not musically talented. The vocal quality of this latest update is approaching human level - it's impressive.
Check out the jingle made below ( I've been playing with the idea of renaming this email and podcast, hence the name. Let me know what you think.)
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