Things to Do Before AI Takes Over Everything

I have a file on my computer that is essentially titled, “Things to Do Before AI Takes Over Everything.”

I’m only half joking.

Every time I hear something new about AI agents, job displacement, synthetic content or deepfakes, I add another item to the list.

Over the weekend, two things happened that made me look at the list a little differently.

First, I had a few conversations with friends about debt and how difficult life becomes when you owe too much money. Then I listened to the latest episode of the Artificial Intelligence podcast about the launch of ChatGPT 6.0 (Astra). Note: I’ll be speaking at their event, MAICON, on October 14^th in Cleveland. If you need a discount code, email me back.

Those two subjects started to feel like the same subject.

I have no idea whether AI eliminates five percent of jobs, 25 percent of jobs or ultimately creates more jobs than it destroys. But I do think there is a reasonable possibility that work changes much faster than most of us are prepared for.

If a company can have an AI agent do something faster, cheaper and perhaps better than hiring another person, it would be foolish to assume companies won’t try.

So I’m not trying to predict exactly what happens. I’m trying to make sure I have as much freedom as possible if the world gets a little less predictable.

Here’s what’s in the file.

Owe Less

Debt takes away choices. The less money you owe, the easier it is to walk away from a job, client or situation that no longer makes sense. NOTE: if you are dissatisfied with your job or something in your life, please begin to get out of that situation. Life is too short.

That doesn’t mean paying off the mortgage tomorrow. It does mean looking harder at high-interest debt and unnecessary financial obligations.

Lower Your Monthly Number

Know how much money you absolutely need every month to keep your life running. The lower that number gets, the more flexibility you have if your income changes.

I’m also looking differently at anything that permanently raises that number, whether it’s a bigger house, another car payment or some other long-term obligation.

Your life might be better by working less. Perhaps making less money. Simplifying and lowering your expenses give you the freedom to make those kinds of decisions.

Keep More Cash

The traditional emergency fund may deserve another look. If AI disrupts entire categories of work at once, replacing income could take longer than we’re used to.

Cash may not be the most exciting asset you own, but liquidity buys time. Sometimes time is exactly what you need.

Diversify Your Income

One employer, one customer or one source of income feels increasingly risky to me. Even a relatively small second source of income gives you another option if something changes.

The same goes for platforms. If your entire business depends on one company continuing to send you traffic, that’s a concentration problem too.

Get Closer to the Money

If you work for an organization, understand exactly how your work creates revenue, keeps customers, saves money or does something else the organization truly values.

I’d want to be able to explain very clearly why my work matters. If I couldn’t, I’d start thinking about how to change that.

Learn AI Now

Preparing for AI does not mean hiding from it. I’m trying to use these tools often enough to understand what they can do, where they fail and how quickly they are improving. The last few months these systems have become NOTICEABLY better. Almost scary.

The person who understands how to work with AI will probably have more choices than the person who waits until their employer forces them to learn it. NOTE: UBS is now requiring entry-level employees become fluent in AI. I’m not sure what that means exactly, but it’s a thing.

Check Your AI Privacy Settings

If you use ChatGPT or another AI system, go through the privacy and data settings instead of assuming the defaults are what you want. If you don’t want your conversations used to improve the underlying models, make sure that setting is turned off where the service gives you that option.

I did this myself, and I think everyone should at least understand what they’ve agreed to.

It’s also best to assume that anything you put into your AI system is being reviewed and probably not private.

Share Less

Don’t put passwords, Social Security numbers, private keys, recovery phrases or other critical security information into an AI system.

I’d be careful about uploading complete financial statements, estate documents and other highly sensitive information just because doing so would be convenient.

AI should know enough about me to help me. It doesn’t need to know everything about me.

Don’t Connect Everything

We’re going to be encouraged to connect AI agents to our email, calendars, bank accounts, documents and eventually almost every part of our lives.

Some of that will be incredibly useful, but every new connection also creates another permission that needs to be thought through. Just because an agent can access something doesn’t mean it should.

Right now, I haven’t connected my AI to anything. No calendar. No email. No browser.

AI Can Recommend. I Approve.

I want AI researching investments, comparing choices, looking for problems and telling me what I might have missed.

I don’t want an AI agent independently moving money, trading investments, signing agreements or making major financial decisions without my approval. Capability and authority are two very different things.

Lock Down Your Identity

Strong unique passwords, a password manager and multi-factor authentication are becoming more important as impersonation gets better.

I also think families need a simple rule for emergency calls involving money. If one of my kids supposedly calls someday needing $20,000 immediately, there needs to be another way to verify that it’s actually them (we have a word we all know, that only we know).

Back Up the Important Stuff

Keep copies of important documents, contacts, photographs, financial information and creative work somewhere you control.

Cloud services are wonderful until an account gets locked, a company changes its rules or something you assumed would always be there suddenly isn’t.

Old-fashioned printed documents in a safe sounds about right to me.

Control Access to Your Audience

If you’re building a career or business, don’t let LinkedIn, YouTube, TikTok or any other platform be the only way you can reach the people who know you.

Get the email address. Build the direct relationship. If content becomes nearly infinite, the relationship may become the more valuable asset.

Become Known for Something

If AI makes it possible for millions more people to create competent articles, videos, podcasts and businesses, simply making more stuff won’t be much of an advantage.

I believe, at some point soon, there will be more AI creators than human creators. Simply put, you’ll be following “people” you think are real but aren’t, and you’ll never know the difference. Or you simply won’t care.

Reputation, expertise, a recognizable point of view and trust become harder to manufacture. I’d rather spend the next few years building those things than trying to win a production race against a machine.

Get the Boring Stuff Done

Wills, trusts, beneficiaries, powers of attorney, insurance and instructions for accessing important digital assets probably deserve another look.

None of this is really about AI. It’s simply the kind of housekeeping that becomes more important when you start thinking seriously about financial security and protecting your family.

Build Your Plan B Now

I’ve always been a go-100%-at-your-Plan-A-and-forget-about-Plan-B person, but now I’m starting to reconsider that.

If AI changes your job, your industry or your income faster than expected, it would be nice to already know what another door looks like. That might mean testing a side business, building a new skill, growing an audience or simply figuring out another way you could make money before you actually need it.

Bonus: Experiences Over Physical Items

Served to you without explanation.

Bonus: Stop Blaming Your Family and Friends

It’s probably stopping you from living your best life. Let it go.

Don’t Bet Everything on One AI Prediction

I’m not selling everything, quitting writing or heading for a bunker because someone says artificial general intelligence is two years away. Although, I have thought about getting some land in Wyoming (kidding but not kidding).

I’m trying to make changes that still look smart if AI develops much more slowly than expected. Less debt, more liquidity, better security, more ownership and stronger relationships seem useful either way.

That’s really what this file has become for me. I’m not preparing for AI to take over everything. I’m trying to make sure that whatever happens, I still have choices.​
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​P.S.: A reminder that I’m giving away my book, Burn the Playbook, for free. Please share it with a friend. I’m finding more and more parents are reading this and then sharing it with their kids.