The central question addressed is what to do next after acquiring AI building skills. The video outlines four main motivations people have: monetizing their skills (41%), leveraging AI as business owners (26%), building out of passion (16%), and using AI to become better employees. The speaker shares his personal journey from a non-technical role at Goldman Sachs to becoming an AI freelancer, consultant, and eventually a business co-founder, emphasizing a gradual, passion-driven approach rather than a ‘get rich quick’ scheme.
Four Paths to Leveraging AI
The video details four distinct paths for individuals based on their current situation and goals:
- Aspiring Entrepreneurs: The demand for skilled AI automation builders is high. The recommended path is to start gradually. Don’t recklessly quit your job. Begin as a freelancer to gain experience, build a portfolio, and validate your skills with paying clients.
- Business Owners: The goal is to increase efficiency. Start by identifying and automating a single, repetitive daily or weekly task. Once successful, move on to the next one. This iterative process allows you to become your own internal AI consultant and significantly save time and resources.
- Employees: The objective is to become an indispensable, highly productive team member. Identify areas within your role where AI can be implemented. Use automation to enhance your own performance, then educate your team to do the same, positioning yourself as the go-to AI expert within the company.
- Passion-Driven Builders: If you enjoy building with AI more than your day job, start by freelancing on the side. This allows you to earn extra income and dedicate more resources to your passion, providing a low-risk way to explore a potential career shift.
Key Takeaways and Examples
A core conclusion is that the most effective long-term strategy is to evolve from simply selling AI templates to becoming a consultant who can diagnose a business’s problems and provide tailored AI solutions. This “doctor vs. pharmacist” approach adds significantly more value.
The video provides real-world examples for each path:
- Freelancer: Dan created a finance workflow, shared it on LinkedIn, and landed his first client without a large following.
- Freelancer to Agency: Lars started by building automations for his personal network, used the case studies to launch a full consultancy, and now helps clients with scoping and strategy.
- Business Owner: Aiden used an AI lead form and voice agent in his car detailing business, reducing his lead cost from $8 to just $1.
- Employee: Brian built an AI Slackbot that cut new employee onboarding time from 8 weeks down to 2-3 weeks, providing massive value to his company.
The overarching message is that there are multiple viable and strategic ways to leverage AI skills. Success comes from taking gradual, deliberate steps, focusing on providing real value, and being driven by genuine passion for the technology.
Mentoring question
Considering your current career situation and personal goals, which of the four paths—freelancer, entrepreneur, intrapreneur (employee), or business owner—most aligns with how you’d like to leverage your AI skills, and what is the very first small step you can take on that path?
Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=4LQYWziOg0Q&si=78zYtJXA3vtharGB
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