I got ahead by…using email?

You know how people debate whether we’re in “1995,” very early in the AI transition, or “partying like it’s 1999,” right before the bust?

Doesn’t matter.

What’s relevant to you: We’re still early in the biggest disruption to knowledge work in your lifetime. And you’re most likely underestimating the opportunities opening up for you.

I say that because only in hindsight did I realize how lucky I was to begin my career during the dot-com boom, though it should have been obvious then.

I worked at 100+-year-old institutions, far removed from Silicon Valley geographically and culturally. I still leapfrogged a couple rungs on the career ladder, almost by accident. Only because I picked up digital fluency as a recent college graduate most established professionals lacked.

Some vignettes from that era show how much easier it is to jump ahead than you realize:

• When I started out as a young newspaper reporter, exactly one desktop in the newsroom had internet access. You’d think there’d be a queue of impatient reporters lined up for it, but no, I was the only one over there. I saved so much time researching online and emailing sources instead of chasing them by phone that I cranked out more pieces than established veterans…without even realizing I was doing more than expected.
• When I moved to PR, I naturally emailed pitches instead of calling or faxing like established pros were used to. Not all journalists were into email, but enough were that I was crushing it, again, without even realizing it. Three front-page, national top-tier stories in one month.
• When I gave my first conference presentation about what I was doing, at age 26, comms leaders lined up afterwards asking me to train their teams. I hadn’t anticipated that it was even a thing, so when the first person asked my price for a daylong session, I blurted out the biggest number I could think of: “Five hundred dollars.” (Congratulations, Bridget, you got a steal!)

See what I mean about “by accident”? I wasn’t a genius; I just used new tools others weren’t yet accustomed to.

I don’t know what your version of those lucky breaks will be. But they’re worth seeking, whatever career stage you’re in.

Do you have a “chief of staff agent” managing your other AI agents? Might seem distant and “too techie” for you. But believe it or not, lots of mid-career pros once thought email was too techie!

So separate your understandable caution about AI’s impact on society from your optimism about how it can propel your career. Both are warranted, and you can hold both at the same time.

Find like-minded individuals experimenting with AI – my Inner Circle is a great option. Push each other to go further.

Somewhere in your world, there’s a figuratively empty chair in front of the desktop with internet access.

Go sit in it and see where you end up in 30 years. 😊