Staying Ahead

If you didn’t know, I 🤢 Jolly Ranchers. 🫥 
Because they taste like flavorful rocks.

If you’re anything like me, we eat starbursts instead.

Cause they different, flavorful, and easy to chew. That’s what B² is!

We take the hard out of the Ai and entrepreneurship and add a lil flavor.

Today's flavor is all about memes and skill/talent stacking with a little bit of ChatGPT to conduct a skill audit because….

B² helps you unlock your potential and rise with purpose.

What it do people? Welcome to another edition of B² (B Squared)!

Those on their entrepreneurial journey are watching as skill stacking, AI, and mental well-being converged in 3 long (and sometimes short) years.

It’s overwhelming, exciting, scary for some, and 🤯 at the same time.

But the 4th Industrial Revolution is HERE. We have much to cover and all the time in the world.

Today’s world is between 6-8 minutes. And bet nobody say nothing about how late this edition is! NOBODY!

Cough Syrup, Gummy Bear, Jolly Rancher

We running it down again of all the things we found interesting this last weekend. Read the one you like in this section and leave the rest; we don’t mind!

• Cough Syrup: The Yucky Stuff First - Zucks Deep Dive Into Your Photo Stream 😶 

• Gummy Bear: It’s chewy, it’s flavorful 😍 - It’s the Livestream Shopping for me

• Jolly Rancher: This is going to take some time, or we can bite into it -Get Somebody Else to Do It

The Myth of Mastery

You wouldn’t believe it, but the writer behind this keyboard is a tech-loving school counselor. Yep, I work with all kinds of neurodivergent kids, but I also love technology, hence this newsletter.

I adore working with kids - the adults make things worse. I promise, which is why I need an exit plan despite making decent money at my job.

Anywhoo, I’ve struggled for years to figure out what my “purpose” or “talent” was. I’ve often felt confused because not only do I have many interests, I do well at a lot of things.

However, I was never a master at anything that interested me. I used to think that was a problem. Why? Because society is a f****ed-up mirror to hold yourself up to.

Instead of beating myself up for not having “focus,” I embraced the fact that I am just that awesome in skill acquisition (sometimes).

And now my ADHD is jealous.

The point is, if you are someone like me with many skills, this fourth industrial revolution and society can make it seem overwhelming. It can feel like you don’t know enough to stay ahead. Like the skills you already have are obsolete.

But Oh, nay, nay. We may be in an ever-changing fourth industrial revolution, but that doesn't mean you can't join the cause. How do you say?

I got you.

Talent Stacking 101

Scott Adams' concept of Talent Stacking involves stacks on stacks on stacks of strategically layered skills to enhance your career.
His talent stack is represented below:

With these skills, you’re well on your way to extraordinary via two different paths, according to Dilbert - Scott.

1. Either become an exceptional specialist (the Beyonce) or

2. Excel in multiple domains, sprinkled with your passions and a little razzle dazzle.

Most of the world’s population is in category #2 because, technically, the first option is a Jolly Rancher (HAF), which explains why there’s only ONE Beyonce. So, we gonna leave that alone - at least, that’s what Scott suggests.

The second way is my jam. The second way is probably where you are or want to be, as represented by this LeoDeCap meme 👀:

Hold up now - Dilbert isn’t the end-all-be-all of skill/talent stacking. Naval Ravikant believes knowing how to build and sell along with writing, arithmetic, persuasion, and computer programming (or some kind of advanced maths *I like the words “maths”) will make you unstoppable.

Kyle Kowalksi of Sloww.co takes it a step further by acknowledging that "Talent" isn't synonymous with "strength" or "skill."

To him, skills may seem to be a byproduct of what you love + your talents which is represented by his Unique Stack “formula”.

My Expedition: Crafting an Authentic Skill Stack

Of course, I overlooked all that when researching to focus on my own Authentic Skill Stack. Once upon a time, I joined a very awedome mastermind with Hello 7 (Rachel Rodgers). The community I found there was awesome, but it wasnt the right time. And that’s all I have to say about that.

This framework was shared, and I often go back to it - as I did for my own authentic stack, which is a combo of everybody.

You may be asking how in the world will any of this help you figure out your own unique stack - I don’t know honestly. Do with it what you will!

JK - I worked very diligently through nursing two kids and a partner with the flu to revamp this prompt from the AI Soloprenuer - shoutout to Ole!

I know - it’s pretty long, but the good thing is, you don’t have to break it up to copy and paste. And - I put everything in a Google doc to explain the prompt and how to use it. 😉 

And if you would still rather not use the prompt - check out the Unique Talent Stack Architect, a GPT that combines everyone mentioned previously to build a unique talent stack.

"I'm exploring Kyle Kowalskis' 'Unique Stack' framework, which combines Adam Scotts 'Talent Stack' and Naval Ravikants 'Learn to build, learn to sell' framework to diversify and enhance my skill set. As a [school counselor], my expertise is largely non-technical, but I'm eager to broaden my abilities in unique ways that align with my current skills.

**Kyle Kowalskis Unique Stack Formula**

My Unique Stack Title: [Determined by ChatGPT]
Passion: Purpose (Problems you try to solve for yourself + a sub-topic of an infinite subject + another subtopic of an infinite subject)

Cornerstone: Reading + [Clifton Strengths Domain - what do you lead with] (Clifton Strenght 1 + Clifton Strength 2 + Clifton Strength 3) + Writing

Commercialize: [skill 1] + [Another skill you excel at] + [skill 2]

Untapped Potential: [Your untapped skill potential]

**Context:** [List your passion - what gives you meaning day to day or what you wish you could do for the rest of your life, and the income doesn't matter]
List what you believe your path or purpose is. Explain what you are seeking and what problem are you trying to solve for yourself and in turn, for others.

List 2 additional subtopics of those subjects.

What is your cornerstone? Are you a reader, writer, or speaker (pick 2 out of 3). 

List your Clifton strengths domain and your top 3 Clifton strengths (if you know them). 


What skills can you commercialize (make money from).  
List at least 3 skills you excel at. 
Describe what you are currently working on outside of your current occupation. 


## Example Text##
My passion/purpose is to help people reach their potential through technology. Problems I try to solve for others by helping them expand or discover ways to improve their own skills with technology. For example, I am helping a family coach use her current IP to build a community on mighty networks. I hope to productize this service and offer to build out communities for those people who do not want to take on that task - no matter what industry (like Hunter Hammond).  Problems I try to solve for myself are finding joy and self-love I want to build wealth and seek truth. I excel at research, ideation, problem-solving, speech, and rapport-building]. My Clifton strengths domain is Relationship building. 
My Top Three Clifton strengths are Ideation, achiever, and Relator]


**Objective:** To identify your untapped skill potential and discover 10 additional skills that are quick to learn, uncommon in your field, and versatile, aiming to create a distinctive and valuable unique stack combination.

**Constraints for Skill Selection:**

1. Each skill should be learnable in 1-5 hours for basic understanding.

2. The skills should be an uncommon mix, especially in the context of [your current job, major skill or occupational pursuit].

3. Chosen skills must be adaptable to different professional scenarios.

**Learning Styles Consideration:** Recognizing that everyone has a unique learning approach, the skills and learning plan should cater to three types of learners:

1. Traditional Learners - who prefer structured, formal education methods.

2. Non-Traditional Learners - who learn best through hands-on experience, self-teaching, or informal settings.

3. Educational Hackers - who seek unconventional, innovative ways to acquire skills quickly.

***Task:**

1. Determine the Unique Stack
2. Brainstorm a list of 5 Productized services.
3. List 10 skills that align with these criteria, with a rationale for each, considering a school counselor's perspective.
4. Draft a “future avatar” statement to illustrate the potential impact of these skills on my career.
5. Develop a learning plan for each skill, with steps tailored to traditional, non-traditional, and educational hacker learning styles.

OK, that’s all for now. I went above my standard word count because I like yall. Unitll next time…..remember:

We live, work, and innovate in this world. I predict if AGI is not already a thing, it will be announced in the next six months. Don’t play with me!
There are a lot of people who will choose to ignore the Ai revolution and get left behind. We are not riding that pony. My ass is too big anyway. So the choice is yours:

Be there, or Be square.

NayLah