Ep 71: How To Stay Relevant In An AI World
If you ignore AI for the next two years, what happens to your career? Organizational psychologist Dr. Kelly Monahan says you'll be left behind, not by AI itself, but by the people who learned to use it.
Kelly spent 15 years researching the future of work at Meta, Upwork, Accenture, and Deloitte, and she joins Mandy Alt and Mandy Holt to break down what's actually happening behind the scenes as companies weigh AI against payroll.
In this episode:
- Why AI can do about a third of most jobs better than you can — and what to do with that freed-up time
- The real skills that matter now: intellectual curiosity, a "learning muscle," and basic statistics literacy
- Why older generations are more excited about AI than Gen Z (and what that says about who's actually at risk)
- The three-step growth path for using AI in a small business: speed, scale, and scope
- Which jobs are safest from automation — hint: it's not the ones sitting behind a computer
- The mistakes new entrepreneurs make when they lean on AI too hard, and where a human still has to have the final say
Kelly is the bestselling author of Essential and the founder of Beyond the Desk. Her new book, Reclaim the Plot: How Leaders Rewrite the Story When AI Rewrites Work, drops September 29th. Pre-order here - https://www.reclaimtheplotbook.com/
Ways to find Kelly:
Website - https://drkellymonahan.com/
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/monahankelly/
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-monahan-ph-d-18879413/
YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@futureofworkisnow
Whether you're worried about your job, building a business, or just trying to make sense of the AI noise, this conversation is a grounded, no-BS look at where work is actually headed.
FAQs
1. What skills does Dr. Kelly Monahan say will matter most in an AI-driven workplace?
Kelly explains that intellectual curiosity, adaptability, continuous learning, and a basic understanding of data and statistics will become increasingly valuable as AI handles more routine tasks.
2. Will AI replace jobs or change how people work?
The episode explores how AI is more likely to transform many roles than eliminate them entirely. Professionals who learn to work alongside AI will have a significant advantage over those who ignore it.
3. What is the three-step AI growth path for small businesses?
Dr. Monahan describes a framework of using AI for speed, then scale, and finally scope—helping businesses first become more efficient, then expand capacity, and eventually create new opportunities.
4. Which careers are most resistant to AI automation?
Kelly discusses why jobs that rely on human relationships, physical presence, judgment, creativity, and complex interpersonal skills are less vulnerable to automation than many desk-based roles.
