Lesson 219 · 2 min

Skills that keep their value

As AI handles more routine work, judgement, knowing your field deeply, working with people and checking AI output become more valuable.

When something becomes cheap, the things around it become more valuable. If drafting text gets cheap, knowing what to write, for whom and whether it is right becomes the scarce part.

Deep knowledge of your field matters more. You need it to spot when an AI answer is wrong, which an outsider cannot do.

People skills keep their value: understanding what a customer really needs, building trust, leading a team through change, and handling a hard conversation.

There is also a new skill: working well with AI. That means giving clear instructions, checking results with care and knowing when not to use it. This is a learnable skill, much like learning to use email or spreadsheets once was.

Do it now

Map your skills

  1. 1. Write five skills you use at work.
  2. 2. Run the prompt below.
  3. 3. Pick one skill to strengthen this quarter.
Here are 5 skills I use as [ROLE]: [LIST]. For each, tell me in a balanced way whether AI is likely to make it less valuable, more valuable or about the same over the next few years, and why. Then suggest one skill I should strengthen and a small way to practise it each week.

Quick check

Why does deep knowledge of your field matter more when you use AI?

Why does deep knowledge of your field matter more when you use AI?

More on this

Words from this lesson

AI literacy
Knowing enough about how AI works to use it well, spot its mistakes and decide when not to use it.
Human in the loop
Designing a process so a person reviews or approves the AI's work before it has real consequences.