GUEST: Jack Barstad, Senior at University of Wisconsin, Lacrosse

THE QUICK VERSION:

• AI is transforming the way we learn, work, and process information.
• A few interesting use cases mentioned are analyzing health and fitness tracking data from MyFitnessPal and WHOOP, gene sequencing, brainstorming, research and reading long documents.
• We stress the importance of being adaptable to AI and other new technologies in the workplace, because AI won't necessarily take your job, but someone using AI will.
• Employers are highly motivated to adopt AI and new technologies as it decreases their expenses (computers are cheaper than humans)
• It's beneficial to be constantly interacting with AI and testing new ways to use it in your life.
• It's critically important that you pay close attention to AI and how it's being utilized so that you can compete in the current job market.

⁠MORE OF PROJECT ROOKIE HERE⁠

⁠FOLLOW JETT ON TWITTER⁠

⁠FOLLOW ALEX ON INSTAGRAM

THE QUICK VERSION:

Jett and Alex discuss the challenges of navigating the tightjob market post-graduation, share insights on an AI website generator, interesting developments in electric vehicles, and reflect on Alex’s journey to securing a job in the biomedical field.

WHAT WE LEARNED:

• Stay positive and committed during job searches,don’t panic.
• Interview experiences can vary dramatically, avoidbeing discouraged by a few that didn’t go as well as you’d hoped.
• Be open to a variety of job opportunities, evenif they aren’t exactly what you were looking for.
• Your first job doesn’t define your entire careerpath.
• Look inside your network for job opportunities.
• Maintain close relationships with past employersas they can lead to future opportunities.
• You’ll often find the most unexpected opportunitiesfrom those in your network.
• Have a plan in case you don’t have a job linedup right after school.
• Developing an intimate understanding of yourexpenses ahead of time will help you get through a break with no income.
• Gamma is an AI driven text-to-website and text-to-presentationgenerator.
• The electric vehicle market is rapidly evolvingand an interesting industry to pay attention to.

MORE OF PROJECT ROOKIE HERE

FOLLOW JETT ON TWITTER

FOLLOW ALEX ON INSTAGRAM

WHY WE MADE THIS EPISODE:

Nick was an aspiring sports journalist who pivoted to corporate communications when he realized sports journalism wasn't the right fit for him. A perfect example of willing to be agile and dive head first into something new when things don't go as planned. Plus, we get to hear how Nick approaches mistakes, how he values keeping an open mind, and how he uses AI to increase his effectiveness at work.

OUR TAKEAWAYS:

• Nick initially pursued sports journalism, but as he learned more he realized it wasn’t exactly what he had envisioned, so he kept an open mind an eventually found corporate communications.

• Corporate communications involves strategic messaging for internal audiences across large organizations.
• Success in corporate communications requires adaptability and the willingness to take on all sorts of tasks that may or may not be in the job description.
• Although Nick pivoted to corporate communications, sports journalism remains a passionate hobby.
• Mistakes in life and at work are some of the BEST learning opportunities.
• AI tools have significantly improved productivity in his role.
• Nick emphasizes the importance of continuously trying to learn new things.
• Nick is currently focused on strengthening his knowledgearound investing and improving his financial literacy.

Find Nick HERE

More of Project Rookie HERE