How to Worry About AI - Advice for Mid-Career Professionals

I wrote recently that, for anyone concerned about the career effects of rapid development and adoption of AI, “the essential stance is to be alert to change while deepening your knowledge and skills.” What specifically does this mean for you if you are mid-career and concerned about layoffs or about your skills becoming obsolete? 

By mid-career, I mean that you have been in the workforce long enough to have applied your skills to increasingly complex situations, have been promoted or given greater responsibilities, and have a sense of your particular strengths and how you want to capitalize on them in your career. You are likely at least 30 years old; you may be a good bit older than 30. You may be in your second career or have followed an indirect path to where you are now. What you have in common with other mid-career folks is that you look forward to new challenges, want to continue learning, and don’t want to find your path blocked, whether by AI or for other reasons.

There’s no way to completely future-proof your career, but you can take steps now so that you will be well-positioned for whatever changes are down the road. Here’s how:

Take a fresh look at your experience and your interests, including what you have been doing and learning beyond your job and your organization. 

Consider the choices you have made along the way and the options you didn’t follow or were prevented from following. For example, if you have typically chosen to deepen your technical skills, balance that now by seeking out opportunities to develop as a manager or to strengthen your presentation skills. Broadening your competencies gives you more flexibility in moving to new roles and makes your ability to learn evident to you and to others.

Review your career, education, and personal experience for times when you have adapted to new situations, whether that was a geographic move, a new role, a reorg, or a change in the economy.

• What have you learned from those past transitions? 

• What do you wish you had known then about how you learn and how you cope with change? 

Make sure you understand the larger issues in your business or organization. 

You want to be one of the first to notice how the landscape in which you work is changing. Keep an eye on the competition and the environment, whether that involves government regulation and deregulation, international competition, upstart competition, or new technologies. Do your best to be ahead of the curve of learning and change so that you can be one of the people pointing out opportunities and risks that require preparation.

Explore roles and fields adjacent to what you have been doing and build connections there.

• Be knowledgeable about what is emerging and learn how to talk about it well. 

• Be prepared to make the case for what you bring and how it is of continued or enhanced value in changing times.

  • What kinds of decisions have you learned to make – on your own or in collaboration? 

  • Where do you trust  your judgment? 

  • Why do others look to you for advice, mentoring, perspective, or brainstorming? 

These strengths will guide you through whatever is ahead, and they’ll help you know when to speak up and when to let others take the lead.

Keep your connections strong and alive with ongoing learning and professional development.

• Find ways to stay in touch with peers in your organization and elsewhere. 

• Support them with referrals to new information and with mutual brainstorming about where your field is going.

• Join or participate in professional and trade organizations in your field or in fields you want to learn about.  

Sharing information appropriately means you will be in the know as the ground shifts, and you’ll have trusted resources to turn to when you need advice, information, or referrals.

No one can know for sure which way a business or field will develop, but nurturing your curiosity and developing your skills are the best ways not to be left behind. There’s no single path to continuing to be relevant and valuable. Knowing your strengths and your values and cultivating possibilities will help you find your own path and build on everything you have done.