At a dinner with entrepreneurs a couple of nights ago, a smart entrepreneur friend said, “This is the most uncertain about the future I’ve ever felt.”
He’s not alone in feeling uncertainty today.
I’ve felt it too.
At first, I thought it was just the “curmudgeonly old man” attitude of “the world is going to hell”. I am only 4 months away from 40, you know.
Maybe not.
The largest factor, at least among the people I’m closest with in the business world, is AI.
It’s hard to know exactly how AI will affect business, jobs, the economy, the stock market, and just about everything else in our lives.
On top of this once-in-only-every-few-decades technology, we have the 2026 Iran war, a stock market due for a major correction, and extreme political polarization that’s been building since 2008, the year of the financial crisis. (2008 was also the year Apple launched its iPhone app store and 3G.)
As individuals, much of what’s going on in the world is outside of our control. We can’t control the actions of 8 billion people. We can barely keep our dog from barking at Amazon delivery drivers.
Here are three things we can do to thrive in today’s uncertain world, no matter what happens.
1 – Keep learning
Don’t just fear AI, get curious about it. Try out any of the large language models (LLM) chat tools, if you haven’t already.
Try out using some of this technology to improve your life. Use it for marketing in your business, to ask for tax savings advice, or to ask for birthday gifts for your parents.
Also, learn why people think AI is not likely to take over the world. I’m a big fan of Deep Work author Cal Newport. Read his blog or listen to his podcast.
Learning doesn’t just mean going down a YouTube rabbit hole to feed your fixed perspective. It means deliberately seeking out multiple perspectives, especially those with which you disagree, so you get closer to the truth.
Keep learning outside of AI. No matter how much the world changes, there will always be a premium placed in the economy on those who are the best at their jobs (or offer the best products from the best-run companies).
Aim to be the best. It starts with learning. Read, attend conferences, talk with smart people.
2 – Be more rational
I know more than a few AI enthusiasts today who preach the grand benefits of AI in their lives. Yet, as an outside observer, nothing has changed.
Their businesses are still mediocre. Their health remains the same. Their real-world relationships somewhat deteriorate as they spend more time chatting with software tools.
Focus on real-world results:
- Are you making more money?
- Are your sales growing?
- Are you healthier?
- Do you have more high-quality real-world relationships?
If not, then AI isn’t helping. You’re deluding yourself into thinking that AI is improving your life. (Much like many people I’ve seen preaching the benefits of “plant medicine” — more on that shortly.)
3 – Build slack
You don’t protect yourself against uncertainty by fearing change; you prepare for it.
The stock market might crash. The economy might go into a moderate or even severe recession. You might lose your job. Your business might decline.
All of those things are always possible.
Prepare.
Build slack into your business and life.
- Create a cash cushion (at least six months of living expenses in your bank account).
- Spend less than you earn.
- Don’t overhire. Don’t underhire.
- Keep a big gap between what’s legal and what you’re willing to do.
- Stay (or get) healthy.
- Nurture relationships with those you love and admire. You never know when you might need them.
- Don’t do drugs, even “plant medicine”. I don’t know about you, but I need all the brain cells I have.
The world has felt uncertain before
The Cold War lasted from 1946 through 1991. That’s 45 years of nuclear war fear-inducing anxiety.
In one study of 6th-, 7th-, and 8th-grade students during the Cold War, researchers found that 85% of adolescents reported feeling powerless and 90% reported feeling uncertain about the future.
In the 50s and 60s, many people feared the “space race”. The Soviet Union could use satellite-launching technology to launch nuclear missiles at the U.S. from space.
People also generally feared an unknown “weaponized frontier” in space.
Yet, space exploration has brought us GPS, cooperation among 18 countries to build the International Space Station, solar panels, and better natural disaster monitoring.
I believe AI will be like a combination of the space race and social media.
On the one hand, it can free people from mind-numbing jobs like creating spreadsheets for eight hours a day. By automating tasks like that, more people will be able to make greater contributions.
On the other hand, as we’re already seeing, AI fuels delusions, makes people dumber, and further isolates people from one another.
As individuals, we must focus on what we can do.
Keep learning.
Be more rational.
Build slack.
By doing these three things, we can reap the rewards of AI while protecting ourselves against unknowable future events.
Keep looking up,
Matt