I’ve often described my career as an undisciplined stroll through the creative industries. Not a climb. Not a sprint. Just a meander, fuelled by curiosity, boredom and the need for a regular paycheck.
I’ve been a musician, a TV director, a university lecturer, a radio broadcaster, a creative director, an editor at large and an author. Not in that order. Not with any sort of plan. If I ever applied for a job, I imagine recruiters would stare at my CV like it was a riddle written in finger paints. Even once I’ve edited out the more bizarre detours, it still reads like I’m three freelancers in a trench coat.
And yet that chaos – those lateral leaps and wonky career choices – might be exactly what more organisations need right now. Because in a world reshaped by AI, it’s not tidy expertise that makes you future-proof. It’s curiosity, breadth, openness, and the willingness to evolve faster than a job spec.
The tyranny of letters
The hiring world has become weirdly obsessed with alphabetic metaphors. Are you T-shaped, Pi-shaped or M-shaped? The T-shaped model – deep expertise in one domain, with generalist knowledge across others – once made sense. But as AI accelerates change, that tidy framework begins to fray. You don’t need someone who knows 10 other disciplines. You need someone who can grow into them when needed.
Read more: The future looks squiggly
These metaphors often become corporate comfort blankets; tools we use so we don’t have to think. I haven’t found a letter shape that accounts for the most important traits: willingness to learn, ability to adapt and the courage to unlearn what no longer works.
Personality is greater than proficiency
Research into the 'big five' personality traits shows that openness to experience and emotional stability are significant predictors of success in dynamic roles. Yet we still hire based on certificates and titles. We often use personality assessments as if they’re horoscopes, over-interpreted and easily gamed.
The misfits, those who defy easy categorisation, are often the ones with the most adaptability. You just have to stop trying to cram them into a predefined shape.
Your skills have an expiry date
The half-life of skills has dropped to around two-and-a-half years in some industries. Many of my old skills now have zero market value. I used to hand-draw storyboards for TV ads. That was replaced by people bodging images together in Photoshop. And now that’s been replaced by prompt nudgers working to an unreasonable deadline.
Most organisations haven’t caught up. They’re still listing “five-plus years’ experience” in tools that were obsolete last Christmas. Here’s what does endure: communication, judgement, human insight, empathy, persuasion. Skills that are refreshingly AI-resistant.
AI doesn’t care about your org chart
By 2027, 44% of workers’ skills are expected to be disrupted by AI. But this isn’t just about replacement, it’s about redefinition.
Read more: HR predicts blended human and AI workforce, research reveals
Many organisations are clinging to the hope that employees will 'just pick it up'. That’s not a strategy; it’s magical thinking. Sitting someone in front of ChatGPT doesn’t make them an AI-savvy worker any more than plonking someone at a piano makes them a concert pianist.
If you want your workforce to follow the right path, you need to lead them. You need to sell them the destination, give them the map, and provide generous training and resources.
Cultivating the curious
'Adaptive expertise' isn’t a buzzword. It’s a survival trait. It means the ability to learn, unlearn, and reapply skills in unfamiliar situations. It’s what separates employees who grow with change from those who panic when their Excel macro breaks.
You start with mindset. Not toolkits. Mindset. Walk into your office ignorant. Ask questions. Admit you don’t have all the answers. Be curious about everything and certain about nothing.
Hire for humanity. Train for change
As AI reshapes the workplace, we don’t need more people who fit the template. We need more people who challenge it.
So maybe the next time you see a chaotic CV that colours outside the lines of your job description – a glorious mess of disciplines and deviations – you’ll see what I see: not confusion, but capacity. Not a lack of focus, but a surplus of adaptability.
By Dave Birss, co-founder of The Gen AI Academy
