The 9-Second Version.
As AI automates routine work, real value shifts to hiring creative thinkers from unconventional backgrounds who can solve problems with imagination and adaptability.
Discover.
Look closely at the CVs climbing to the top of hiring piles today.
They’re not just MBAs or management consultants—they’re game designers, digital creators, and storytellers.
Why? As AI automates repeatable tasks, the real value of human talent is shifting. Creativity, ambiguity tolerance, and collaborative problem-solving are becoming the new superpowers in business.
Margaret Heffernan, renowned professor, author, and entrepreneur, calls it the end of forecast-plan-execute. Thriving in uncertainty now requires adaptability, experimentation, and imagination—not just following checklists or routines. The best leaders of tomorrow will be artists, designers, or creators who ask, “What if we’ve been solving the wrong problem all along?”
In the age of AI, your competitive edge doesn’t come from technical precision alone. It comes from those who navigate ambiguity, tell stories that move people, and imagine futures beyond today’s constraints.
Think.
If your organization still rewards the safest hands over the boldest minds, what future are you building?
- Are you hiring to preserve what was—or to create what’s next?
- How much of your team’s value lies in what can’t be automated?
- How are you fostering inventive thinking and creative problem-solving as the most crucial skills of this new era?
Do.
This week, try this thought experiment:
Pick one meeting, project, or team process and ask: What part of this could AI handle tomorrow? Then, look at what remains. The gap—that space only humans can fill—is where you need to double down on creativity, empathy, and big-picture thinking.
Want to go deeper?
- Invite someone from a nontraditional background (artist, educator, community leader, poet) to share how they’d approach a business challenge you’re facing.
- Revisit one job description you’re hiring for. Strip out every “safe” requirement. Instead, ask: What future skills would make this role transformative, not just functional?
Because staying valuable as a leader—or as a company—means becoming the kind of thinker AI can’t replace.
To your creative success…
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About Josh
Josh Linkner is a New York Times bestselling author, serial entrepreneur, venture capital investor, professional jazz guitarist, and a globally recognized innovation expert. To learn more or to explore a collaboration, visit JoshLinkner.com