Episode 410 Philip Blackett AI Opportunities for Veterans Transcript

This transcript is from episode 410 with guest Philip Blackett.

Scott DeLuzio: [00:00:00] Thanks for tuning in to the Drive On Podcast where we are focused on giving hope and strength to the entire military community. Whether you’re a veteran, active duty, guard, reserve, or a family member, this podcast will share inspirational stories and resources that are useful to you. I’m your host, Scott DeLuzio, and now let’s get on with the show.

Hey everyone. Welcome back to Drive On. I’m your host, Scott DeLuzio. And today my guest is Philip Blackett. Philip is the. Author of Future Proof, How to Adopt and Master Artificial Intelligence to Secure Your Job and Career. And in this episode, we’ll be discussing the challenges and opportunities presented by AI, particularly how, uh, veterans, their families can prepare for the future job market by embracing AI technologies.

Uh, Philip will share his, uh, future proof, Framework that can help [00:01:00] anyone start building momentum towards a secure career in this rapidly changing landscape. Uh, before we get into all of that, though, Philip, um, welcome to the show. Glad to have you here.

Philip Blackett: Hey, thank you so much, Scott. Happy to be here with you.

Scott DeLuzio: Yeah, absolutely. So, um, Before, I guess, before we get into all of this, I mentioned this future proof framework and, um, you know, I know a lot of folks, uh, who are listening to this show, they are either, uh, service members, uh, in the, in the military, veterans, um, or family members of, uh, Any one of those groups.

So I kind of collectively grouped all of those people into the military community. So it’s a big military community audience, uh, that is listening to the show. And I know there’s a bunch of people who might be in the military now. They’re looking to transition out soon and get into a career and figure out what [00:02:00] they’re doing.

You know, what, what are they going to do when they get out of the military? And, um, you know, what’s next for them. Um, and even people who’ve been out for a little while, but this AI, uh, stuff is, is kind of, uh, starting to change the way we do work. Um, you know, and, and for family members, spouses of, of all these people, they are looking to figure out a way to, So, um, let’s start off, I, I mentioned the intro, this, uh, future proof framework, uh, can you talk to us a little bit about that?

Give us an overview of, of this framework and what it’s all about.

Philip Blackett: Yeah. So I think part of how we look at this guy is, you know, first things first with regards to the framework, you know, artificial intelligence, first off can be a little scary, you know, it could be, um, a little frightening, a little, um, disjointing for lack of a better word, because it’s [00:03:00] something new. And oftentimes, you know, we fear what we don’t fully understand.

And something like this is, you know, I would say artificial intelligence is this generation’s social media, or this generation’s dial up internet. You know, do you remember when we had fax machines?

Scott DeLuzio: Yeah, I do.

Philip Blackett: and so I think that’s just, you know, part of the theme here is that, you know, the one thing that’s constant in our lives is change.

And if you think about any sort of new technology, I would group AI with it, that there’s an opportunity for us to grasp it, but it depends on how we look at it. So the first step I think about the framework to future proof with AI is one, look at artificial intelligence as an opportunity to serve you, not necessarily a threat to take away from you. And I think. That step sounds simple, but it’s very much foundational, [00:04:00] because unless we grasp AI as something, as a tool that can serve us, that can help us become more productive, more profitable, better at what we do day to day, building a skill set that, you know, many employers and businesses and organizations are looking for.

Especially as we’re coming out of the services. Um, unless we have that sort of mindset, we’re actually going about this handicap for lack of a better word. Um, and so I think that the mindset part of this is really important.

Scott DeLuzio: Yeah. And, and to that point, uh, just to, I don’t want to, I want to interrupt your flow. Cause I know there’s more steps to this, this framework that you’re talking about, but that mindset, the way I’ve. Uh, kind of wrap my head around it and thought of it as a tool versus, um, versus some threat to my career or, you know, anything like that.

Uh, think about something simple. Like if you have a printer to print [00:05:00] off a document at home, right. Years and years ago. Uh, you used to have to do that kind of thing by hand with a printing press, right? And you have to individually place all the letters and then roll the ink and then press the paper. And, and now you’d have a piece of paper that had all the, the printed words on it. a pain in the ass. I wouldn’t want to do that, you know, myself, if I had to print out a, uh, you know, I don’t know, whatever it is that I’m printing out, you know, a document for work or, or something like that. I don’t want to have to sit there with individual letters and Place them and roll the ink and do the whole thing.

I don’t want to have to do all that. So I have a printer. It’s a tool. It’s a tool that makes my life more efficient. It, it makes it, uh, You know, so I don’t have to do all of those steps that I just described. It does it for me and it’s kind of set up in a manner that it just allows that, that work to happen without me having to figure out how to place all the [00:06:00] letters and do all that other craziness.

Um, so. AI, in my opinion, the way I look at it, it allows me to do things or it does things for me, I should say, uh, that now I don’t have to do them and it just frees up time for me. It makes my life a whole lot more efficient when I, when I use it, you know.

Philip Blackett: Yeah, I think it’s perfect the way you’re looking at that. Um, you know, I think the big thing you think about there too is, you know, just imagine Scott, like even with a printer or like a typewriter, like now it seems it’s a pain in the rear. But back then, the thought was, compared to what the alternative was, as far as what they were doing before, like, I can push a key And it hits, you know, that key on a piece of paper versus me having to, like, write it and print it, which, you know, cursive writing is like a lost art nowadays.

But back many, many, many [00:07:00] years ago, that’s how we wrote. So to go from there to actually just push a key on a keyboard, so to speak, on a typewriter to type up something was saving people time. And likely saving people ink possibly as well. Um, the same thing to your analogy with the printer. Um, if you wrote this stuff and now you had to print it, how long is that going to take you to write a four page letter, uh, versus pushing a button and in a matter of seconds, four pieces of paper with your writing comes out and you can now take and use whatever way you want to.

So it’s the, the bottom line here, though, Scott is. We’ve been through this before. It’s like the same process, different tool. And so if we got around to actually using telephones. got around to actually using cars, we got around to [00:08:00] actually using a refrigerator, right? Cause there was life before refrigerator, believe you me, then we could do the same thing with artificial intelligence.

Scott DeLuzio: Absolutely.

Philip Blackett: And so I think once we’re able to get on that same page, see it as a tool to service, just like any other new technology we’ve had in the past, the next thing is, okay, let’s take a moment to take inventory of what all we have on our plate as far as work is concerned. What are all the jobs to be done that we absolutely have to do ourselves, Scott?

Nobody else can do it better than you, Scott. No one else you want being done except you, Scott. Um, those are the things we say, hey, AI, hands off. That’s gonna be what I’m gonna take on. But I would imagine there’s probably some jobs to be done. That you don’t mind somebody else doing. That you say to yourself, you know what, if somebody could do this [00:09:00] job for me at least 80 percent as well as I could, I’m fine with it.

Because it’s going to save me time, it’s going to allow me to do more of what I want to do, and allow me to do more of what I feel like is in my sphere of genius, right?

Scott DeLuzio: Yeah,

Philip Blackett: So those jobs, you could absolutely do them yourself, you could delegate it to somebody else, or you can outsource it to artificial intelligence. Right? So once you actually have a sense of what those jobs to be done are, the third step is, let’s see what’s out there. Let’s look at what available AI tools are on the market, free or paid, and figure out for that job to be done, for that task you have on your plate, what can you use a tool to do? This is the time to experiment, to [00:10:00] test and see trial and error, what works for you, what gets 80 percent of the job done at least, if not better. And what can you actually see yourself doing ongoing? So if you find those type of tools to use, you start using them. And I’m sure with AI, because technology is changing almost every day, you’re going to find new versions, new iterations, new tools altogether. That may be even better than what you were using before.

So the fourth step I would say on the framework is stay flexible. Stay in a growth mindset to learn more about what AI is, what these tools are, what they do. They’re going to constantly update. They’re going to constantly get better. Stay on the cutting edge from that standpoint. With relation to what you’re doing in your job or business, right?

Don’t get overwhelmed trying to, you know, figure out what all is being done by every single [00:11:00] job imaginable, but you want to get yourself in that sort of framework as far as saying, Hey, I’m going to essentially grow with AI going forward over time. And the last thing I would say too, is, you know, all this is very much individual focus, which makes sense if you’re working a job, what I also would imagine too.

As you’re learning this, maybe there’s somebody else you can help impact to. Maybe there’s somebody else that you can teach. You can train, you can build their skill sets on your team and your organization. Because what also happens to Scott is that if you get really good at a skill, people start to look to you for help.

Scott DeLuzio: that’s right.

Philip Blackett: And if you start to be able to help and train people. Then that’s a clear inherent need they have of you on that team. one of the best ways you can future proof your job or career is adapting to the times, to the new technologies, [00:12:00] implementing what you’ve learned. And then also teach others what you’ve learned as well, and train them to become better as well. And that in and of itself, regardless of the new technology, the new AI tool of the day, if you’re taking on that sort of framework, you’re putting yourself in a really good spot to future proof your job and your career, where you serve more as the linchpin or a thought leader on your team or in your organization.

Scott DeLuzio: Yeah, absolutely. And, and you, you just become more valuable that way. Uh, and you know, that’s going to definitely serve you well when it comes time for promotions and that sort of thing. Um, but, but also just looking at the organization as a whole, whatever you’re, wherever you’re working, um, it’s going to, Help you, uh, make that organization better.

Like you said, if you’re training other people, then, then they get to learn how to [00:13:00] work more efficiently and you’re not sitting there, uh, you know, filling out the same forms over and over and over again that, you know, maybe an AI tool can do, or, or some other routine task that you can just get an AI tool.

Uh, you know, system in place that, that then does the work for you and frees up your time to go do other, more valuable things. Uh, and the cost of a lot of these AI tools is in some cases, it’s, it’s so cheap, it doesn’t make sense to spend your valuable time doing the things that it can do, like you said, 80 percent or even better in some cases, it can get most of the, that work done.

And then, yeah, sure. Maybe you’re going to have to go in and tweak it because you don’t like exactly the way it came out in, in one way or another, but you know, there’s, there’s so much work that just gets done for you. Uh, in some cases it could [00:14:00] be done automatically and. You know, you don’t have to even think about it now.

Now it frees up your brain to go think about other things, uh, too. And, um, so that’s why I’m, I’m like a big proponent for AI. And so I, when, when I, uh, you know, saw you and, and the, the stuff that you had to talk about, I really wanted to share that with, with folks, because I know there’s some people out there, um, who.

Have that mindset like you were talking about before with, um, you know, Oh, who needs a car? You know, we, our horses work just fine. You know, that type of thing, but that kind of mindset, um, uh, but they have that mindset towards AI, like, Oh, it’s going to take over the world and, you know, it’s going to start taking our jobs and it’s going to, you know, start learning for itself and it’s going to, you know, uh, wipe out the human race and they have all these fears, right?

Um, there’s, there’s really no. No reason, there’s no rational reason to not [00:15:00] kind of get on board with it. It’s good. It’s going to be there whether you’re using it or not. Um, yeah, at least learn how, how can it help you? Right. I think that’s, that’s my mindset. Um, are there any other things that you, you think of that, uh, might cause someone to be hesitant or resistant to adopting some of these technologies?

Philip Blackett: Well, I think a couple things come top of mind for me just listening to you, Scott. I think one is, you know, I wasn’t around when this happened, but I would imagine when cars came into play I don’t know if horses all of a sudden started protesting cars coming on on the assembly line saying cars are going to take our jobs and we’re going to have no use going forward.

No, last time I checked, there’s still horses around here. Um, we just don’t have many people riding them. You know, it’s more like an in question type of, like, competition, there were people having pet horses and that sort, [00:16:00] but you don’t see horses, uh, trotting, galloping, and pooping on the streets as they were before.

Um, you just have a different use for them, right? And I think that’s what’s going on there. And I think having that sort of approach is really helpful when you think about AI, it’s just like, hey, Is there a chance that some jobs may be lost? Yes, but this is not new. They call it creative destruction for a reason.

When something new and creative comes around, it may make one tool’s use obsolete and one’s more needed. You know, it makes me think of the quote that the CEO of the publicly traded company NVIDIA once said, it’s not AI that’s going to take your job, Scott. It’s the person that knows AI going to take your job.

Scott DeLuzio: Right.

Philip Blackett: So what does that mean? It’s not some inanimate technology. [00:17:00] That you have to be concerned about. What you’d be more concerned about is your hesitancy. Your unwillingness, or dare I say, your stubbornness to learn AI and how it can apply to your job and your career. And in particular, getting back into the workforce and seeing how you can build a skillset that is growingly more valuable and needed. That’s what’s gonna be more of concern. You know, rather than just some technology, it’s more so like, look at the man or woman in the mirror and ask yourself, are you going to stop yourself from finding the right type of job because you’re scared of learning about AI?

Scott DeLuzio: Right. And one of the things I think about too, when, when I’m thinking about the, the potential impact of it is, um, a lot of times military families, like the spouses of a soldier, for [00:18:00] example, um, they, they move around from time to time. Every couple of years they’re moving from one place to another. And it’s hard for someone to find a professional job where they, they, No, they’re not going to be there for more than a couple of years.

And a lot of times employers don’t want to hire somebody who’s only going to be there for a couple of years, knowing that we’re going to train this person. We’re going to get them on board and all the expenses that go along with getting someone, a new employee on board, it just to lose them in two years, you know, that it’s not really high on the priority list for, uh, you know, uh, employers.

Right. When you have this. Additional skill set that you can use. Potentially you can use this from anywhere in a remote job type thing. So it doesn’t really matter where you live. If you’re, you’re moving from one place to another. Um, if you’re able to utilize this tool, uh, in your job, um, you know, it might.

Make it [00:19:00] so that you don’t need to be physically present in an office, and it might make it so that, uh, you have a little more flexibility in, in your, your career. Um, at least the knowledge of how to use some of these tools, uh, will, will help you. Make you more marketable and in the job market and make it so that, uh, employers are going to give you a second look maybe because it’s like, Hey, this person knows how to, you know, streamline some, some things in our operations here and use these tools and make it so that we, um, we’re a more efficiently run company.

So yeah, I’m going to give this person maybe the opportunity to work remotely. Um, you know, as long as that, that job is capable of doing it so that they can. They can help us, uh, you know, along the way too. And so, uh, you know, I think there’s, there’s some tremendous upside to learning, uh, these tools. Um, and one of the things I was, I was wondering about is, um, you know, for someone who [00:20:00] wants to leverage AI.

To kind of enhance their existing set of skills. There are so many tools out there. Um, where can they, is there like one place that they can go that they can learn about all of these things and what’s available? Um, or is it just still kind of scattered out there? Like everyone’s fighting for themselves, like the Wild West kind of thing.

Philip Blackett: Well, I think to that point, Scott, you know, there’s a number of different tools out there. What I also would say is those tools are likely going to change. Over time. Um, that is a Wild Wild West component to it, but I think, you know, some tools that you can think about, you know, a chat GPT or perplexity AI, those are ones that seem like they’re going to be around.

They have some stay in power. Um, but what I would say is Google could be your friend as well and beyond just Gemini, it could be something to say, Hey, [00:21:00] you know, what are good AI tools to use for my job as a project manager? What are good AI tools to use as a communicator or as a podcast host? You know, so it’s almost like AI tools plus whatever job you do, right?

And so I think that’s part of where I would go about it. Just keeping it focused on what you do on a day to day basis and asking yourself the question, Is there a tool out here that can make it easier? Easier, more effective, more efficient, um, for me to do this job quicker and more productively. Um, cause I think that’s where I would put more of my focus on, because like I said, we’re still trying to figure this out, you know, even the most advanced people in AI understand a lot of what’s going on now is going to change in [00:22:00] three or four months from now, but it’s just more so just, Hey, where can you just start just little by little one day at a time, even if it’s just reading an article.

Related to AI in your field a week, hey, that’s much better off than what you were doing last year.

Scott DeLuzio: Yeah, exactly. And there there’s even newsletters. Uh, there’s a newsletter that I’m, I’m subscribed to. It’s called the, the neuron. Um, and they send daily, they send, uh, emails that have different AI tools and different use cases and things like that. So it might be something you’re not even thinking, like, does this thing even exist?

Um, and then you, you get an email. It’s like the light bulb goes off and you’re like, ah, right. I can, I can use that thing and do that. But, um, But you’re absolutely right. Yeah. Google, um, you know, whatever your job is and, you know, AI tools for, like you said, fill in the blank, whatever your, your job is, or, or whatever the task is that you’re trying to do.

Um, [00:23:00] uh, the way I look at it is, uh, anything that I have to do over and over again, you know, repeatedly, you know, one off things, that’s fine. I, I, I’m going to do a one off thing, um, you know, on my own, but, uh, for things I got to do repeatedly, if there’s a way I can, I can get, you A tool like, like an AI tool to do it for me.

Um, so I don’t have to spend all my time doing this, this thing. Um, for example, just for example, you said, uh, you know, even for podcasters, right? Um, after we’re done with this episode, I’m gonna take this, this episode file that, that I’m gonna download and I’m gonna put it into a tool that’s going to generate a transcript for me.

Automatically. And it’s all using, uh, you know, some form of artificial intelligence. It’s not me sitting there and listening to the episode all over again and then typing it all out. That would take me forever. That, I mean, however long this episodes and this episode ends up being, um, you can multiply that by at least five or six [00:24:00] times for the amount of time it would take me to type all that stuff out.

That would take me forever. So yeah, upload this thing to, uh, you know, a tool and it let it. Spit out a transcript for me. Um, and that allows me to have captions on the video, uh, when I post it on YouTube or, you know, anywhere, anywhere else I post it allows me to have a transcript, the actual physical text of it that I can put on my website.

Um, you know, it gives me all of those things and I didn’t have to do anything. I just have to upload the file and, and it’s done, you know? So, um, you know, people who are maybe afraid of AI, it’s like, think about it. I just saved myself hours of work by doing this. Or it would have been something if there wasn’t a tool available that could do this for me, um, I just wouldn’t have the transcript.

I would just forego it. And so now the show is that much better because I have that tool available and I’m able to use it to. Make it better. And [00:25:00] so think about those things in your life, whatever your job, even, even your personal life, um, you know, other things that you can do to just make your life easier, right?

Philip Blackett: Yeah, because I think even to your point, Scott, just using that as a great example, if you think about it, if you had to do the transcript of this episode, two things come to top of mind. You hit on one of them. One, how long is it going to take for you to do a transcript of every 30 minute to 60 minute podcast episode you record each week?

Right? Like you said, there’s gonna be a multiple of that time you had recording, which, that’s time away from you doing something else, time away from your friends and family, time away from something else you wanted to do. But the second question that comes up that really Marvels me is, if you knew that that was what you had to do every time you recorded an episode, how many episodes would you want to do [00:26:00] of your podcast show, Scott?

Scott DeLuzio: Not that many. Uh, if, if I was like, I got to sit here and I got to type this stuff out every single time. Oh my gosh, that would be, that would be awful. Um, if I had to do that. So to your point, yeah, I, I wouldn’t, this is going to be episode, uh, 400 Trust me, it wouldn’t have been even a tenth of that if I had to do all of that work, you know?

Mm

Philip Blackett: Yeah, so like, to your point, Scott, like, we’re witnessing, there’s a number of tasks and jobs out there. That some people probably would not have wanted to do if it was going to be very manual and time consuming that now with these tools, it’s opening up a new opportunity for people, you know, people that once would say, I would never do a podcast show and you ask them why it’s like, well, I got to find the right equipment, the right people.

I got to be able to do the post production. I got to be able to promote it [00:27:00] afterwards. They got to repeat the same cycle next week or next month. Now, in each one of those facets, for example, Scott, AI can be helpful to dramatically, significantly cut down on the time and resources needed because for some people, if it’s not them, they will hire somebody else.

And if they hired somebody else, that might be 100, 200, 500. So now per episode, how much is it costing you compared to how much are you generating and bringing in? That’s a quick and easy way for a lot of podcast hosts, for example, to say, no, this, this isn’t worth it. It’s costing me too much in time and money and energy.

And so now with these tools, just using podcasts and just as an example, but now you can apply it to any other job or, or tasks you have to get done, as you said, Where is the opportunity that you once were saying, Nah, it’s too much for me, but now You’re saying, maybe I give this a try. Maybe this wouldn’t [00:28:00] be as bad.

Maybe I actually would like to do it this time if AI is helping me.

Scott DeLuzio: Right. And they, the, the tools that are out there can do so many different things. Um, and uh, like you said, Google it and, and you’ll, you’ll find the tools that are out there. The, in the newsletter that I mentioned, there’s, there’s so many different, uh, things that Resources available where you can go and, and check this stuff out.

But, um, but when you have the, the tools available to you, it’s just going to make your life so much easier. Um, you know, and think about like a physical tool. Uh, would you be able to get that nail into that piece of wood without a hammer? I mean, yeah, sure. I could probably go find a rock and figure out how to do it, but it’s not going to be.

As efficient. It’s not going to be as easy to do as if I had a hammer, which is designed for that task specifically. Um, and so, yeah, use the tools that are available [00:29:00] to simplify your life. Make, make things easier. Um, and. And take things off your plate. I mean, we’re all busy, right? I don’t know anybody who’s just walking around and like, Oh man, I got so much free time.

I don’t even know what to do with myself. Like there’s, there’s people out there like that are so stressed out because they’re working, you know, crazy hours and they’re, they, they have no free time. They have no time to themselves. Like they have no downtime to just kind of relax. I mean, for, for crying out loud, you use some tools and help yourself out.

Right.

Philip Blackett: Of course, like once again, like we keep saying tools, like this is a toolkit you are essentially like establishing, creating for yourself. Like even the construction, I’m looking at houses right now, I can only imagine how long it would take somebody to create and build a house if there were no hammers, there were no screwdrivers, no staple guns.

[00:30:00] Nail guns, like all these new technologies help make it easier. So you could get a house done in a much quicker, more cost effective way than before. So you’re just applying the same thing to your personal life and to your own business and to your own job.

Scott DeLuzio: Exactly. Um, I know you mentioned Google, uh, you know, to, to find, you know, some resources, um, uh, but I know you also have a book where I mentioned it in the beginning, the future proof, uh, how to adopt and master artificial intelligence to secure your job and career. Um, and, and for the people watching the video, you got the picture of the book right there.

Um, tell us about the book and, and can you elaborate on some of the, uh, the ways that, um, people can. Secure their job and career, uh, you know, maybe outside of some of the things that we might’ve mentioned.

Philip Blackett: Yeah, so I think [00:31:00] the main thing that comes off from this book is I try to make it as straightforward and simple as possible, because, you know, listen, the last thing I want to add to you is another 300, 400 page book, right, that you’re just not going to have time to do. So this is literally, as I’m looking at it, about 100 pages, 100 pages in this book.

Right. And what it’s really basically talking about is just applying that framework we talked about, just understanding what the opportunity is with regard to artificial intelligence. Um, how do we best go about it as far as integrating it and including it and applying it to our jobs and careers, how we can be seen as linchpins and thought leaders, valuable to our companies by us utilizing this ongoing, not just one time.

How do we think about things ethically? Because I think a lot of concern, justifiably so, is people thinking that the whole world’s coming to an end because of AI, and it isn’t necessarily because of the technology, it’s more so, you [00:32:00] know, the person behind it, you know, perfect example, Scott, like if I have a butter knife in my hand, What is this used for me?

Well, the best use is I like toast in the morning when I eat breakfast. So I’ll use a butter knife to spread butter and strawberry jelly on my toast when I go eat it in the morning. Well, that’s me. But for somebody else, a butter knife can be used as a weapon. It’s the same tool, same butter knife, but just used differently depending on who is holding it or controlling it.

Scott DeLuzio: That’s right.

Philip Blackett: So AI is in the same vein. There’s some people that are going to do good with it. Some people are going to do evil with it, but there’s ethics involved with here that we talk about briefly in the book, this helping you understand. We got to figure out how do we best utilize this tool? Because there’s a responsibility, not just to ourselves, but to the people that we impact with this tool, um, that we should [00:33:00] be mindful of.

Scott DeLuzio: Yeah, for sure. And, and you’re absolutely right. I mean, I think it goes for anything. I mean, even, even driving a car, I mean, I drive a car. You know, to go to the gym or go to the grocery store or, you know, pick my kids up from, you know, wherever the practice or whatever. Um, I, I use a car for transportation purposes, but there might be somebody out there who drives a car into a crowd of people using it for malicious purposes.

Well, it’s the same car potentially, right. But they’re used

Philip Blackett: are you, what are you going to bark? You’re going to ban cars all of a sudden, because somebody. You know, took matters into their own hands in an evil way?

Scott DeLuzio: Right, exactly. And so,

Philip Blackett: killed the person that, who did it, but the cards itself is still a useful tool for the vast majority of people that want to use it ethically.

Scott DeLuzio: exactly. And you set up guidelines too, where, uh, you know, like just with a car, for an example, um, you know, you drive on a certain side of the road, [00:34:00] depending on the country that you’re in, you stop at a red light, you go at the green light, you stop at a stop sign, you yield when there’s a, you know, the yield sign.

There’s all these rules of, of the road as you’re driving that as long as you follow those rules, everything’s going to be just fine. Right. And so, you know, yeah. AI is still kind of in the wild west, but you know, as long as we have good people using it for good purposes, there’s really no, no, uh, nothing to worry about.

And it’s definitely not a reason to not use it. Um, you know, it’s like, like saying, well, because somebody could run somebody over, I’m not, I’m not going to drive my car. I’m just going to walk everywhere or take a bike or something like that. Like that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. So,

Philip Blackett: You could run somebody over with a tractor too, Scott, but is that going to now preclude you from using a tractor to get your, um, your farm work done quicker than actually manually, you know, planting and harvesting?

Scott DeLuzio: You know, take that a step further. Would you [00:35:00] not eat the food that came from a farm that was used by, uh, or, you know, kind of harvested with a tractor? Um, you know, you’re going to be paying way more for your groceries if you’re going the other way. Right. But to that point, again, if things are going to cost way more, if you’re not using the tools that are available to.

Help streamline and make things more efficient when a farmer, uh, you know, had to go out and manually, uh, you know, work the field. Chances are they had many people working on that field and they had to pay those people and they had to, uh, you know, provide for those people. And that was. Expensive. And so things cost more.

Um, granted years and years ago, there was probably more farms than there are now and more farmers. So it was more evenly distributed, but, um, but now, uh, tractors are available and, you know, a lot of machinery is available to help harvest stuff and, uh, just makes. [00:36:00] The whole process so much easier. Um, and.

That way things can be cheaper too. And so with AI, it helps bring the costs, bring the expense, the amount of time used on whatever the task may be. It just brings it down to almost nothing. Um, you know, maybe a matter of minutes to get something that could have taken, you know, days or weeks, uh, in, in some cases to, to finish up.

So,

Philip Blackett: think, I think one thing that comes to the top of mind when you just said that, Scott, is, you know, there’s a lot of people here that love coffee, right? A

Scott DeLuzio: yeah,

Philip Blackett: lot of people like cigarettes. A lot of people like chewing gum. If I go to any convenience store, And I want to get some cigarettes. I don’t smoke, so this is clearly a guess.

How much am I likely going to pay for a box of [00:37:00] cigarettes?

Scott DeLuzio: gosh, I don’t know. You’re asking the wrong guy. I don’t smoke either, but, uh, it

Philip Blackett: I would imagine probably more than six bucks or so.

Scott DeLuzio: Uh, I got to imagine it’s more than that. Yeah.

Philip Blackett: Probably so, right? Once again, I don’t smoke, so I don’t know. Like, walk with me here. If I go get some gum at your local drugstore, how much is it likely going to cost me to get, like, a pack of gum? Gum.

Scott DeLuzio: A dollar or two, maybe if

Philip Blackett: I’ll probably go a little bit more, probably like three or four bucks,

Scott DeLuzio: okay.

Philip Blackett: And then coffee. People love Starbucks and that sort of thing. How much are they likely spending for coffee?

Scott DeLuzio: I like on a cup of coffee, like one, they’re probably easily spending five or six bucks on that.

Philip Blackett: So what happens here, here’s what’s really interesting about AI. I promise you this is all related.

Scott DeLuzio: Okay.

Philip Blackett: If you go to Starbucks every day and spend five dollars a day for your favorite [00:38:00] coffee, frappuccino, rappuccino, whatever beverage, right? And you rely on that every day to get you ready for the workday.

Alright, four or five bucks a day. You drink it, you go on about your work day, you might need a second one, so double that if that’s the case. Or if you say, hey, I need my pack of cigarettes, pay six, ten, twenty bucks or that sort of thing, box, carton, I’m not sure. You go on about your day, gum, you know, I just had lunch, I needed to freshen my breath before I go in front of my boss, I need this stuff, right?

That stuff has limited usage or utility, meaning you’re going to have to repeat that the next day, and the next day, and the next week. There are AI tools out here that, to your point, can be used multiple times a day for multiple different tasks, saving you hundreds if not thousands of dollars. [00:39:00] And the pricing for some of these tools, some of them are less than a dollar a day. So it’s almost like you can find someone that could be like your personal assistant to basically is like your local genius to ask questions of that you would have paid 60, 000 salary minimum just to have, and you only can have access to that person from nine to five, Monday through Friday. Don’t even think about calling them on a weekend. And they can still call sick that next day or go on vacation. So you have no access to their, their brain or their intellect and that sort. But now I have a tool, for example, that I can access 24, 7 ask any type of question, any type of tasks need to be done. And for one tool I’m thinking of. It cost me less than a dollar a day. So you tell me, what’s the better investment? Was it [00:40:00] the coffee, or the cigarettes, or the gum, or was it the AI tool? Once again, like when we start to look at it like this, this is where it becomes more in that no brainer territory. It just gets right back to the question we started with, it’s like, I’ve pretty much laid out the groundwork here, planned out my argument here.

It’s just more so of, are you going to Jump in to learn more about AI and see how you can apply it in your life.

Scott DeLuzio: Yeah. Because again, going back to what we were saying earlier, that makes you more valuable in the workplace. Um, and I know you said, well, You know, would you rather have that employee that goes on vacation and all that? And yes, technically you’re going to be an employee that might go on vacation and might not be available on the weekends and holidays and all that kind of stuff.

But if you’re the one who’s able to put these systems in place and [00:41:00] get them set up so that the work is more efficient at these, uh, you know, whatever company you’re working at, um, Man, your boss is not going to care if you, you go off on vacation. They’re going to be happy to have you, uh, when you get back, obviously.

But, um, you know, they’re, they’re going to be just thrilled that you’re going to be able to do that type of work for them to make things that much more efficient and,

Philip Blackett: here’s another point too. We talked about, you know, military servicemen and servicewomen. They’re move around a lot. Every one or two years, remote work is really helpful because that basically lowers the barrier with you figuring like you have to physically be in a place to work there. You can be in Florida and work for a company based in Minnesota.

Right. But here’s another option too. There’s a lot of people that are trying to figure out AI for themselves. Personally and professionally, individual and company. [00:42:00] There’s also an opportunity for military servicemen and women coming back into civilian life to build their own business.

Scott DeLuzio: Mm hmm.

Philip Blackett: That could be part of what they do is that linchpin we talked about, that thought leader.

You could be that locally for five to 10 businesses, and you can essentially help them out with their business operations, integrating AI, and you could make. A amount of money that’s equivalent to what you would if you were working a nine to five or more. And all you’re doing is just helping businesses adopt AI into their operations.

Um, you’re having the same skillset. You’re absolutely dependent on growing your skillset because you’re now having an invested interest in doing so. And you’re also having a great amount of impact that you could still do remotely. Where you could be in Florida on a, on a, uh, a military base and you [00:43:00] can service people in Florida and Arizona and New York.

And Massachusetts, like the world is your oyster. So I think what goes on here is once again, like there is a significant amount of opportunity that AI is opening us up with, like the future of work is going to be drastically different from how work was done 10, years ago. It’ll never get to that point again.

It’s just more so of take a moment to just gauge. And see and taste what the future work is going to look like because of AI. And then ask yourself, how do you want to participate in this? Because it’s almost no limit, no limitation on what you can do.

Scott DeLuzio: Mm hmm. Yeah, absolutely. And, uh, more of the kind of leads into another question I had for you is how do you see this evolving AI, uh, over the next week, let’s call it five, 10 years or so, um, and, and what should people be prepared for and, and what should they expect, uh, in, in this landscape and [00:44:00] especially in the, the, the job market.

Philip Blackett: So I think one thing that comes up top of mind for me is I have two girls, two daughters downstairs. Um, they’re on their tablets and they’re, they’re seven years old and they’re learning things that I, as a seven year old, 30 something years ago did not know of. And here’s where I’m coming with this. It’s almost disingenuous for me to try to speculate what 5 10 years would look like with AI. Because I’m already thinking AI is going to look drastically different in a year or two, let alone five to ten. Here’s the other thing to think about with relation to my children. They’re now growing up learning about AI.

Scott DeLuzio: Yeah.

Philip Blackett: So the thing that comes off of my mind when I was younger, I was much more technologically, like, interested, capable, [00:45:00] skilled, and that sort.

I could, like, I could do laps around my parents, you know. Well, think about the next generation. If you’re not taking a moment now within the next 5 10 years to learn about this, you’re gonna have younger people, maybe even your kids, doing laps around you

Scott DeLuzio: Mm hmm.

Philip Blackett: with regards to AI. So I think that literally just popped in my head, Scott, but the thought is, is that 5 10 years from now, not only will technology change, But the people, once again, going back to that quote from NVIDIA, the CEO, the people that know AI, when you have 5 to 10 years under your belt of utilizing this, of growing with this, of adapting to this, like, the people itself will be significantly different from what they were 10, 20 years ago.

The people you may be [00:46:00] competing for jobs with, competing in business with, and that sort. So I see it where the technology is only going to get better. And the people that utilize AI now, the next 5 10 years, they’ll also get significantly better.

Scott DeLuzio: Right.

Philip Blackett: And so whether that is your colleague or your competitor, be forewarned. way or the other, we’re gonna have to figure out how we deal with this, but it’s much more advantageous for us to be on the side of somebody 5 10 years from now. That’s been growing with AI rather than someone that’s been neglecting AI.

Scott DeLuzio: Yeah, absolutely. And you got me thinking of, you know, five, 10 years from now. I’m thinking 10 years from now, my oldest son is going to be in his mid twenties. And so he’ll definitely be entering the workforce, but it also making me feel really old at that point. Um, but, um, [00:47:00] yeah, I, I think, you know, and to your point, he’s, he’s playing around with it.

AI and he’s, he’s messing around with it. And he’s, he’s growing up with that. Um, that it’s just almost like a no brainer to him. It’s just something that’s available. Um, and you know, when, if you’re looking at, okay, you’re getting out of the military and, uh, you’re maybe going to get into an entry level.

Position. Well, if it’s you with zero experience in this and another person who’s coming in, maybe just out of college or something like that, and. They have, they have a ton of experience in it. Well, they’re, they’re picking them, um, you know, with, with that kind of, um, uh, experience because they need, they need that in that company and that’s what they’re, they’re looking for.

So, you know, it doesn’t, I guess it doesn’t hurt to have this in your pocket. Right. Um, to, to just. [00:48:00] Make your, yourself more well rounded, more, uh, you know, technologically, uh, savvy. Um, so you, you know how to utilize some of these tools and you can educate people in, in your, uh, business as well.

Philip Blackett: Yeah, it’s, it’s, it’s, it’s no longer just a, a wish I had, or maybe like even that last scenario I like outlined for everyone that’s making AI adoption more of a necessity

Scott DeLuzio: It

Philip Blackett: beyond just a no brainer. This is a necessity where it’s just like, at the end of the day. Those that get left behind, I can only say, like, listen, um, you’ve gotten the heads up.

This is what’s coming. You see it in the news. You see your friends talking about it. You even have family members adopting it already.

Scott DeLuzio: Sure.

Philip Blackett: At some point, you have to say, listen, for the betterment of [00:49:00] myself, my family, my job, my career. I need to figure this out. Let’s start one step at a time. This is beyond just should I do this next year as a new year’s resolution?

This is the more so I’m already behind. Let’s just start today.

Scott DeLuzio: Exactly. Exactly. Um, before we wrap up, where can people go to find out more information about the, the work you do in, in your book, uh, Future Proof?

Philip Blackett: Yeah. So, so my book, Future Proof, How to Adopt and Master Artificial Intelligence to Secure Your Job and Career. It’s available on Amazon. So you can just look it up by job title. I know it’s a or in that case, you can just look it up by my. Name, the author name, Philip Blackett, P H I L I P B L A C K E T T.

And you can also go on my website, philipblackett. com, or connect with me on social media. Just look up Philip Blackett, whether it’s on [00:50:00] Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, or even TikTok. I’ll be there too.

Scott DeLuzio: Excellent. And I’ll have links to all of that in the show notes as well for folks so they can access it directly there. Hopefully that helps. Makes it a little bit easier for them, but that’s what I’m trying to do. It’s make life easier for folks. And that’s, I think what AI is trying to do as well. So, um, before we wrap up one last thing, I always like to end the show with a little bit of humor.

Um, sometimes the episodes are, uh, you know, not quite as, uh, You know, uplifting maybe as this one might’ve been. And, uh, you know, so I like to just leave it with a little bit of humor. And, um, my, my kids got me this dad jokes book for father’s day. And so I’m utilizing it because I’m a dad and I can, and this is my show.

So what the hell? Um, so a man walks into a clothing store and says to the clerk, Hey, I’d like to try on that suit that’s in, uh, I’d like to try on that suit in the store window. [00:51:00] And the clerk says, sure, but wouldn’t you be more comfortable using the dressing room?

Philip Blackett: Yikes.

Scott DeLuzio: I know it’s bad. I, if people are laughing at me, that’s cool too. I don’t care. As long as they get a laugh. Um, the joke, I know it was pretty corny, but that’s okay. Um, it’s a dad joke and that’s,

Philip Blackett: We’re dads. We can make those jokes then.

Scott DeLuzio: We, we, we like those kind of jokes. So whatever. Um, don’t take that away from us. Anyways, thank you, Philip, for taking the time to join us, sharing everything that you had about AI and, um, you know, the, the potential, uh, for it to benefit our lives and not be, uh, you know, a doomsday type scenario.

So thank you so much for coming on and sharing everything with us.

Philip Blackett: My pleasure, Scott. Happy to have this conversation with you. Thanks so much for the opportunity.

Scott DeLuzio: You bet.

Thanks for listening to the Drive On Podcast. If you want to [00:52:00] support the show, please check out Scott’s book, Surviving Son on Amazon. All of the sales from that book go directly back into this podcast and work to help veterans in need. You can also follow the Drive On Podcast on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, and wherever you listen to podcasts.