What defines a successful entrepreneur in an uncertain, AI driven world?

And just like that, 2024 takes a deep bow. For my final newsletter of the year, this felt like a fitting topic to unpack. Thank you for the excellent question, Najila.

2024 has been a year of colossal change and development. From conflicts to elections, economic troubles, and the eruption of AI - the world is changing at break-neck speed. And with the whiplash comes great uncertainty.

Our brains are wired to crave certainty. On Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, it comes right after physiological needs (water, air, food, et cetera). But great things can come from uncertainty, and every entrepreneur knows that creating something new requires a certain amount of it. No risk, no reward. So, what defines a successful entrepreneur in an uncertain, AI-driven world? I think it all comes down to mentality, a willingness to experiment, an eagerness to upskill, and never removing the human from the loop. I’ll elaborate…

Mentality: Change brings about new challenges, which means an abundance of new opportunities and new problems to solve. We need to re-wire ourselves to look at challenges as opportunities and actively seek them out. The opportunities also arise through progress, innovation, and technological efficiencies, so it’s important to adopt a mentality that embraces these innovations and remains open to constantly leaning and evolving. Find ways to become excited about experimenting with new technologies and upskilling yourself so you can stay ahead of the curve. It may seem daunting at first, but developing your tech literary will become easier over time. It doesn’t come naturally to me, but I’m enjoying the process and I Iove experimenting with new AI tools... In fact, I may even be featured in a new one coming out next year. Enrol in an online course, subscribe to some AI-focused newsletters, follow tech-focused journalists on social media and you’re off to a good start.

Experiment: Building on the above, experimentation has never been more important and more accessible. As someone who didn’t finish school, I’ve been learning through experimentation all my life. Experiment with your marketing, try out new software and technology, build your own website, design your own posters, explore a wild business idea, and learn how to think in new ways (which brings me to my next point). We’ve never had so many tools at our fingertips, and all entrepreneurs should embrace this.

Upskill: AI is transforming the type of thinking we need in order to be successful today, and so the world needs a new school of thought. I was thrilled to see Made By Dyslexia’s Intelligence 5.0 report find that human skills such as lateral thinking, complex problem-solving and interpersonal skills are now the most sought-after in every sector, worldwide. These are also skills that index highly in dyslexics (like me). This is what drove us to launch DyslexicU as a free, online university which teaches people the dyslexic skills that will help them get ahead in a rapidly changing world. The Entrepreneurs and StartUp Mentality course would be particularly useful for the entrepreneurs out there (and it features yours truly!).

Keep the human in the loop: AI cannot replace or ever truly understand a human experience and emotions. It cannot visit your hotel or test out your products. Experiences and human connection remain intangible, so it is vital to keep the human in the loop. I love the quote from Joanna Maciejewska, which says: "I want AI to do my laundry and dishes so that I can do art and writing." Perhaps AI can’t do our laundry and dishes, but it can certainly do more admin-heavy work and free up our brains for creativity and reflection. It’s also important to remember that AI can only provide you with data that already exists in the world – so it’s up to us to remain endlessly curious, creative, emotional, adventurous, and imaginative.

Najila (and anyone else feeling a bit uncertain), I hope you found this useful. Here’s to an exciting year ahead. I hope you all have a wonderful festive season, however you celebrate.

Until next year,

Richard