AI and Technology Revolutionize Workforce Dynamics, Demand New Skill Sets

Hello, listeners and viewers, and welcome to yet another episode of disrupt ed. You know who we talked to here. So I'm gonna go through the drill. We talked to the passionate and purpose driven. We talk to the disruptors out there who are helping us to make sense of that five g wired workforce augmented AI accelerated technology interconnected, globally independent, and pandemic interrupted world of work. And I wanna tell a little bit of a story as we get into the conversation with my esteemed guest today, but You know, I've been in the upskilling world for over twenty years now. And, part of my work as many of you listeners have learned is that I work on the high school dropout problem, which has become an epidemic across our country with over thirty six million Americans. And one of the joys I take is recognizing that when a successful intervention happens and you help an adult to get their high school diploma, lots of great things happen. Because ultimately our interests as productive citizens as robust workers doing work we love in a life sustaining family supporting way, that all comes from lifelong education. I think of technology and this disrupted world has taught us anything is that it's really uncertain and anxiety producing. And yes, Some of us are gonna lose jobs over. We can't lie about that. But what we can do is get prepared. What we can do is talk to the leaders out there and get their advice. Not only about the anxieties and the traps that await us in this AI technology driven learning environment and work environment, but we can also find out about those hidden opportunities. So today, I am so excited because as many of you know, as we've grown the disrupted community now, over twenty thousand people, Many people in my close circle have teased me and said, you really know all these people. And so occasionally, I go on a bender. And I work to get to know these folks. And so I randomly cyber stocks some of my newest contacts, and I find out, you know, Who's the person I think I would most enjoy having a cup of coffee with? And then I reach out to them randomly and just say, you know, perhaps we have something, that we be useful to. Would you like to share a virtual coffee with me? And I will tell you this. I will encourage you to do it wholeheartedly because every time I do it, it works. I've never met anyone that I didn't really truly enjoy meeting. And some of them turned into business contacts and leads and things like that. But more importantly, they turn out to good humans that I get to bring into my circle. And on guests today, Doctor. Keith Keating, is one that checks all those boxes. So I randomly, cyber stalked him when he, connected with me on LinkedIn. And we had the most amazing conversation. And we found that we live nearby. He's since moved on, but we lived close by for a while. And we got to know each other. What a gem? What an extraordinary human being? And also someone who has come from an extraordinary path in his own learning, to do some remarkable things. Bullied and not finding finding safety, and and a great learning environment. He himself was high school dropout, but his story only starts there because he went on to get his PhD in learning from the University of Pennsylvania. Yes. An Ivy League School. So that's happens to high school dropouts that are supported in their journey and find safe haven in lifelong learning. And so welcome to the show, doctor Keith Keading, my friend and colleague. I'm so excited to have you here today, Keith. It's been a while, and I'm so glad we were able to find this time to get on the show together. Thank you, Ron. Me too. I'm, a little emotional from listening to all of that. And I'm also very impressed that none of that was scripted. That's just that's who you are. So you're able to speak like that off the cuff. And it just shows how passionate you are about what you do and about making those connections. And I can absolutely validate that everything that Ron said is true about what he does He did reach out several years ago, and we've built this friendship over, I think, the last gosh, three, maybe four years and I'm just honored and excited to be a part of your show. You know, I love watching it grow over the last couple of years. I'll thank you, Keith. You've been a big part of that success. So let's get into it. You started out and not a good place. And I want you to share a little bit about your origin story because it's not something to be ashamed of, like, the contrary. It's something to share because You share this experience with over forty million adults, adults out there, someone who high school wasn't the right environment, and and didn't allow you to thrive as a learner. So let's maybe you can share a little bit about that. Yeah. I love that you just brought up the word shame. Because it's such a it's a controversial topic, to be blunt, there was shame. For years, there was shame. I mean, I've lied about it. I lied about it so much that I forgot, and I convinced myself that it wasn't a factor or it wasn't my truth. And it was only a few years ago in a conversation with somebody else who confessed that they were a high school dropout that it just came out subconsciously, and it unlocked something in me that I realized I had been trying to change and overcome and shed for years And now it's become almost my superpower. So to kind of take a step back, I grew up, my father was in the military, and I grew up overseas in my formative years. So it's Germany, Korea, Japan, and I had a great school experience until I came to the US. And my education system wasn't linked to where the people that I was in the same grade with. And so my parents would go into one teacher And they would say, Keith is above average, a genius. He should skip a grade. You know, we love having them him, and then they'd go next door. And the teacher would say, we think that he has a learning disability, and he should be held back or put into remedial classes. And so with such a confusing message to hear from the same school system to my teacher, to my parents, they didn't know what to do. I didn't know what to do. Know, I was always the new kid, and then particularly at this school, I was significantly bullied, and it just got to a point where I just didn't couldn't think it anymore. It was not safe, physically, mentally, emotionally. And I had turned to self harm to cope with it. And I just knew I had to make a decision. It was either the my physical safety or, you know, my future essentially is my father told me, if you do this, you will not amount to anything. You are destined to a life of working in fast food restaurants. And by the way, there's nothing wrong with working in fast food restaurants or, you know, any job for that matter because a job is a job and we need to take it to be able to survive, and they're all learning opportunities. So I'm in no way, minimizing fast food. But I did exactly what he said. I got a job in fast food. Right. And your dad is basically saying that you're not gonna get a job that optimizes your intellect, your talent, your inherent gifts. I mean, it's not simply fast food that he's referencing there. It's more that you're not realizing your full potential. Right? I love the way you put it and maybe had he or anybody else put it that way. It might have been received differently, but it was it was meant as a threat. That, you know, you're you're going to be nothing. Mind you, I didn't grow up hearing that I had gifts, hearing that I had this innate skill set. You know, I didn't know what skills were for years. So, yes, I like the way the way that you positioned it. And so I did, I got a job in fast food. I I ended up getting my GED, but I just knew that I wanted to be something else. And I didn't know what that was because I hadn't been exposed to the world of work and to to to different opportunities. So that's that's that's the beginning. I was lucky enough to find a job in LND. So my first job at seventeen was as a Microsoft Office trainer. I had no idea what I was doing. I was the worst trainer that ever existed, but every day I studied really hard and I got point zero zero zero one percent better. And the next day, I got a little bit better and a little bit better. And it started as a job, and then it moved into a career, and then it became a passion, and now it's become a calling. Because I recognize the power of learning, and that's different from education. You know, I don't I don't wanna to combine the two. I didn't That's a really good distinction, because so many of us think, oh, we've gotta check a box. We've gotta get a degree or we've gotta learn, math or hit Street or something. What it really means is that we're constantly in a evolved state if we embrace the power to learn. And the joy of learning and the individuality of learning what it is that that will fuel us and fuel our spirit and fuel our talents, you know. And I think that's the transformative aspect of education. And that's why, you know, Keith, just to divert for a second here. One of the things we talk about several years ago about your journey, as a high school dropout is your, you know, one of the things I told you then that I'll I'll repeat to our audience now is you're in great company. Bobby Burke from the, you know, Quirai is is a high school drama. He announces that on his show and he's becoming extraordinary designer with an international global brand. You know, Mark Walberg, the actor, the founder of Walbergers out there another high school dropout. So you're in great company when you say you've dropped out because for so many people, and creatives and others in particular, high school didn't get it done for us. It wasn't the environment that unlocked that potential that and that gave us that. And if you talk to people who are successful navigating high school, it's typically because there was one person in their camp. There was a teacher that was tougher on them because he saw or she saw something in them. It wasn't because of the curriculum, it wasn't because of the environment. And for many boys in particular, if you're not part of the sports, community. You find it very difficult to get in. You know, I I've never ever really talked about this, but and it didn't stop me from being a student. But there's a there's a lifelong statement being bullied, and I didn't really talk about being bullied until my adult year. Because I was so embarrassed about it, and I still carry a lot of shame about it. It makes you feel inferior. It it gives you an insecurity that's lifelong in some respects. So I totally get that. But you nonetheless, you know, and I love your art from being a job to being a career to being you know, a passion and a calling. That's the way ultimately we want it for everyone. Right? And as an L and D professional, I think that's you know, and from your book, that's clearly what you're trying to get across to a wider audience. Right? Yeah. And I think there's a distinction there because a lot of people that I talk with and I think Instagram helps fuel this which I don't agree with is that you gotta follow your passion. Follow your passion. My philosophy is I wanna find the passion in whatever I'm doing. And it's just a simple mindset shift. But if if I'm if I'm too busy chasing this idea of a passion, and I don't feel it initially, then it's like, okay. That's not the right one. That's not the right one. It's not the right one. And I think that we can find the passion in whatever we do. And I wanna just kinda jump back for a minute because as I think about the the people that you were just list list listing in terms of high school dropouts and the listeners All of our paths are unique. It's they're they're unique like our fingerprints, and there is not one right path to follow to success. Success is is determined individually by each person. And I think what I love the purpose of this show about being disrupted in how technology can disrupt us is technology gives us opportunities that we might not otherwise have access to or existed And I think that's the beauty of the world that we live in today with education and learning is it's at our fingertips. It's we we have access to so much more knowledge in so many different ways than we did before. You no longer need that traditional system I have to do this. I have to go to high school. I have to graduate. I then have to go to college, get my bachelor's, then I had to get my masters, then I had to get a job and I stay with that job until I retire. That doesn't happen anymore. It's We learn unlearn relearn. Learn unlearn relearn. Learn unlearn relearn. It's whatever path works for us. We just now have so many options available. And I and I love that technology has created that opportunity for us. Also also created a lot of confusion and I think that's where you come in and that's where I'm gonna give you an opportunity to plug your your your latest book, which I'm so proud of you for getting out there. This is an amazing achievement in and of itself. But I think the the the issue for many people is understanding what you just said that it's relearning and learning again and it's also about seizing the opportunities along the way to become more invested in your learning. What I think has been one of the challenges that many people find that we identify in this disrupted community is Where do I go from here? You know, I draw an analogy between weight loss programs and education now. You've been given so much conflicting information about what's important and what's gonna work for you that it's hard to it's hard to know where to go. With education, I grew up in a time many, many years ago, where I knew what my path was. I came from an immigrant background with, you know, second generation, Americans that made it very clear from day one, you're going to go to college. You're going to go and do this. And now For many people, I'm not saying college isn't great. It was a great experience for me, but for many people, that's not the next step. And that's okay. And I think that's troubling to many people because we've been instilled in a college ready environment And for many, that's not the solution, there's an and instead of an or. There's certificates, there's certifications, there's skilled trades, There's lots of avenues to pursue in this learning world of ours. And some of them are, you know, are sequential, and some of them are off the beaten path. But I think that's both unnerving to young people as they're starting out on their path and young adults into adulthood. And I think we have to arrest the anxiety by talking about what those options might look like. And you've shared so much of this in terms of technology and AI in particular, but you've also captured a lot of this in this latest book, which I want you to hold up and show our audience the trusted learning adviser, you know. So you're talking about not just being an order taker in the world of l and t. You're talking about being a partner to identify what those goals are. And off camera, I wanna go, to the place that you were talking about AI. Because you aren't, you know, you released a very unsettling truth, which is that AI will take jobs away. We have to say that at the at at the outset full stop. But you had a really great insight about what AI gonna do to us individually. And that's worth, you sharing here because I think that's, gonna be really important to our audience. And there's one piece I wanna clarify because it's not just AI. Technology historically always does three things. It destroys jobs. It changes jobs, and it creates new jobs. That's what technology does. Since it, you know, since the the, weaving looms first were invented way back when, And so we're going and we are experiencing the exact same thing with AI. So it's not fear based that I want to emphasize. It's the fact that there's change. There's significant change and following the topic of this podcast. Disruption. Absolutely. Technology disrupts. What I'm hearing now is we've gone a little bit from the fear based of, oh my gosh, it's gonna destroy jobs. And now I'm seeing a lot of social media and and media in general saying, well, it's gonna create jobs. The problem is there is a gap between when it destroys jobs and when these new jobs are created. So, yes, In twenty thirty five, there might be fifty million new jobs created. But what do we do between twenty twenty five? When those jobs end and twenty thirty five when those new jobs are created. There is a gap there that exists. It sits at the ownership of both the employee and the employer. But ultimately My mission is to empower the employee to take control over their future, and they do that through the power of learning. If there's one skill that I could bestow on every single human, it would be to garner the power of learning because once you learn how to learn, you are unstoppable. We don't know how big the disruption is going to be with AI, but here's what we do know. There is no version of the future that exists where AI is not a part of it. It is now a part of our lives. We're going to see a slow trickle with the disruption of jobs, but it's already happening today. So I know people on fiverr, on Upwork, whatever the gig economy platform is, that are already losing their work because those are the first ones to be impacted. Copy writers, marketing personnel, data analysts, I personally had relationships with individuals on all those platforms that I was using. I no longer need to use them. AI does it for me quicker just as efficient, if not more efficient, effective, and I can take control over it and do it myself in thirty five seconds to maybe a minute. So those are the first roles that are gonna get impacted. Leaders and organizations, every single leader right now is are asking these questions. How can AI make me more effective? More efficient, increase my revenue, and here's the big one, decrease my costs, including the cost of my resources. Every leader is looking at how can I be more efficient with those costs and which head count is that going to reduce? In Maybe they're not saying boldly reduced, but it's going to change. And if I have a hundred people who are doing the same job, and AI can do a part of that job. I'm not gonna need a hundred people anymore. So these changes and these disruptions are happening are going to continue to increase. What individual employees need to do is take control over this. They need to get experience with AI. And I'm gonna share a quote. It's not my quote. AI is not gonna replace you. It's the person who knows how to use AI that's going to replace you. You know, technology is meant to augment us. It's meant to free us up so that we can focus on our human skills and we shouldn't be afraid of that. We should be embracing that. But what's happening is some companies are blocking AI completely beyond their their networks because they don't want their information shared because they don't know what's being done with it. And so by blocking it, they're telling employees, yeah, don't worry about this right now. Right. But they're creating a scared. They're creating a problem down the road. I think this is also true. To my educator audience out there. I think there's school districts and, places of learning where they're shutting down AI because they're afraid of place and they're afraid of what AI can do and what ChatGPT is really sort of in the beacon for AI. We've had it for a long time, but chat GPT has really announced the world how easy it is. It's, as you said, it's right on your phone. I've been able to help friends write goodbye letters to, partners. They've been, you know, able to write invitations to, you know, all kinds of events. I mean, ChatGPT is very powerful. Every single day. I mean, it's the second tab. I'm constantly going there. Even just as a sometimes, my partner has made a concern that he thinks my relationship is becoming too dependent on Chad GPT because I bring it up. Codependent. Right? Yeah. Like, you know what I learned today? It can do. It can do this, this, and this. And so every single person needs to be exploring chat GPT. A pretty funny piece. Yeah. We we've we've just now we just call it chat. You know, I don't I don't wanna because it takes too long the rest. I'm like, hey, you know, my friend, Chad was teaching me today, this and that. But everyone needs to embrace this, not fear it because it's not going anywhere, and it can help us, but there are systems like the education system, like the workforce who are putting that that wall up I think the challenge with the education system is sure you can block it in the school. You don't think the kids are going home and using their phone or their personal laptops to use it? Absolutely. So rather than trying to fear it and say, no, no, no, we're it's not allowed here. We need to become experts in it. Figure out how to use it. Bring it into the classroom so that you can teach kids how to properly use it. It because if if you don't do this, they're not learning the right techniques. And it's not going anywhere. Right. To our listening viewing audience, this is disrupt at where we've been talking to an amazing colleague and friend, Doctor. Keith Keating, who's just come out with a new book, the learning, the trusted learning advisor, and it's a really great read for understanding the learning landscape that we're all facing. We're gonna take a quick break, but I have so many more and I'm sure you have so much you wanna hear from Keith as well that we're gonna bring him back on episode two. So stay tuned. Take a quick break, and we'll be right back at you with episode two with Doctor. Keith Keating. Thank you so much for listening and come back to us.