You Have No Choice But to Build
The trending story on any social media is how many people lost their jobs because of AI. That is if they are not discussing politics and war. Some people hate AI. Some are claiming they built a rocket engine to transport humans to the moon. Neither claim has anything to do with reality.
The world has moved on without people. Technology has once again disrupted our world. We are reacting as if it hadn't in the past. The Industrial Revolution fundamentally changed how we live, how we eat, how we spend our leisure time. The entire global population was reshaped because of it. It forced us to work in an environment that is the opposite of how evolution programmed us.
So I am not particularly shocked by what AI is doing. The present tragedy always feels bigger than the past ones because we are living inside it. That doesn't mean I have no sympathy towards people who lost their jobs. I am writing this piece because I genuinely empathise with all of them. I have lost my job twice in a career of fourteen years. I know how miserable it feels. Especially when you have a household to run.
My advice isn't about finding jobs. It is about building things using the very thing that destroyed your job. Build revenue streams. People are still going to need things to buy. Services to get things done. The money in the world is only increasing. You would think that if so many people lose their jobs, consumption would fall. It won't. Maybe briefly, but the overall flow of money will only grow. Look at what they are paying AI product heads. They are not in the mood to conserve capital.
I also know the internet is flooded with ideas about how to make money. The person claiming to give you a blueprint on how to make money is making money by selling you that blueprint. It is like an internet dating coach. Nineteen-year-old guys telling you how to attract a beautiful woman. Avoid selling courses unless you are genuinely skilled at something.
There are only two ways to make money. Either you sell a product or you sell a service. So find something you can sell. Start selling things online. Not dropshipping but actually buying something wholesale and figuring out how to move it at retail. Don't get into content creation; it's a dead end. You will be exhausted and frustrated long before a single dollar hits your bank account.
The money is still in real businesses where you sell something people actually want. If you are skilled at something, your expertise is what you should be selling. If you know things, teach them. Not through books but through genuine online classes. Use social media as a distribution engine. A place where you go to find customers.
Learn the skill of investing. Do not blindly buy index funds because someone told you to, unless you know how to manage those investments and understand when to exit. This is a controversial piece of advice, but you must always know your exit conditions. The horizon can be long, but ask yourself a simple question: under what circumstances would this investment philosophy no longer hold?
Train your mind to spot opportunities in the world. Don't go asking AI what to do; it will mislead you, because it isn't as intelligent as it is made out to be. Not in practical matters, at least. Go out, talk to people, and identify the opportunities yourself. Use AI as an affordable assistant that can build things for you. It can design, code, assist with technical problems, and find the holes in your plan.
Even if you have a job right now, you need to think about building revenue streams. Content creation is not a revenue stream. It is a desperate bid for fame, under the assumption that brands will chase you down. It only leads to further misery. Build a genuine skillset if you lack one. Sell actual products that people want. It could be a food item or a handcrafted aesthetic product. Revisit your investment philosophy, because if the entire world is being disrupted, what makes you think your portfolio is immune.
We are all in the same boat, even though online we prefer to mock one another. Immigration, racism, xenophobia are all excuses. What we are witnessing is the brutal choreography of capitalism, and we are searching for a scapegoat to absorb our frustrations. If they dismantled your life, then build a new one or reinforce the existing one. I know it is not easy, but what choice do we have?