We're all free-falling now (this is your chance to learn how to fly)

Hey there!

Microsoft just cut 3% of its workforce. Duolingo is being called "the face of an AI jobs crisis." The tremors are here—and they're just the beginning.

When I saw these headlines this week, I felt electric, undeniable hope.

Not because layoffs are good (they're not), but because when systems collapse, they create space for something entirely new to emerge.

And that's where we come in.

The safe path is dead (that's actually liberating)

Let's be brutally honest about something: that "safe path" we've all been sold is bullshit and we know it. Get the degree. Climb the ladder. Put in your time. Wait for retirement.

It was already unraveling as it is often sub-optimal for having an intentional human life we actually enjoy in the moment.

Now AI is shredding it completely.

The corporate restructuring we're witnessing isn't a temporary adjustment—it's the beginning of a fundamental reimagining of what work even means.

And here's the liberating truth hiding beneath the anxiety: 

When there's no more "safe path," you might as well build the path you've always wanted.

You don't need to be a "born visionary" to feel this calling

For years, I lived with this persistent discomfort I couldn't quite name.

It wasn't that I didn’t like my job exactly. It was more like... looking at my calendar filled with back-to-back meetings and realizing those blocks represented my actual life passing by.

Being too mentally exhausted to be present with your kids.

Squeezing our hobbies and side quests into weekend hours.

That Sunday night dread that wouldn't let me enjoy the last precious hours of freedom.

I knew something felt off, but I had no clear vision of what else was possible.

Just a persistent feeling that kept nudging: "This isn't it. There must be another way."

Maybe you've felt it too—that subtle ache when you:

• Watch another beautiful day from behind your screen

• Miss your child's moment because you're in a meeting about a meeting

• Feel your creative energy drain away in workflows designed for someone else's bottomline

• Wonder if the "someday" you're working toward will ever actually arrive

You don't need a fully-formed vision to know the current path isn't aligned with how you want to live.

Sometimes that discomfort is the first signal that you're meant to build something different.

The dreamers' moment is here

I've been thinking a lot about who will thrive in this new landscape.

It's not just those with technical skills (though that helps).

It's not just the well-connected (that never hurts).

It's not even just those who master AI tools the fastest.

The people who will flourish are those who've always had that spark—that urge to create something, to build, to reshape their life and the world around them in some way, however small.

The dreamers. The builders. The ones who've been quietly thinking "there must be a different way" while sitting in the open-space offices.

What's extraordinary about this moment? The tools to bring that vision to life have never been more powerful, more accessible, or more ready to amplify what makes you uniquely human.

The psychological barrier no one's talking about

In my latest YouTube video, I explored those deeper implications of AI that keep me up at night—how it's reshaping our understanding of creativity, our children’s education, human potential, and even our sense of self.

But there's something I didn't fully address, and it's been nagging at me ever since.

The biggest obstacle to thriving in this AI revolution isn't technical—it's psychological.

It's that voice that whispers:

• "I don't know where to begin"

• "Everyone else is ahead of me"

• "It's too late to pivot now"

• "What if I fail and there's no safety net?"

I know this voice intimately because I hear it too.

Even now, even with everything I know about AI and its possibilities, there are days when the pace of change feels overwhelming.

The difference isn't in who hears that voice—it's in who moves forward anyway.

Prompt of the week: The Fear-to-Creation Converter

I created this prompt specifically to help break through the psychological barriers holding you back from embracing your creative potential in the AI era:

You are my Mindset Coach specialized in helping people transform fear and uncertainty about AI disruption into creative agency. I'm feeling [anxious/stuck/overwhelmed] about the rapid AI changes happening in the workforce. I need your help identifying and breaking through my psychological barriers.

Please have a coaching conversation with me that:

1. FIRST, asks me 3-5 thoughtful questions to deeply understand:
   - My current relationship with technology and AI
   - Where my specific fears and uncertainties are coming from
   - What creative ideas or projects I've been hesitant to pursue
   - What past experiences shape how I approach change

2. THEN, after I respond, help me identify:
   - The core limiting beliefs keeping me frozen
   - Where these beliefs originated and how they've protected me
   - How these same beliefs might be holding me back in this new context
   - What new empowering beliefs would serve me better

3. FINALLY, guide me to:
   - Reframe my relationship with uncertainty
   - Identify one small but meaningful creative project I can start this week
   - Design a simple daily practice that builds my "creative courage" muscle
   - Find the intersection between what excites me, what I'm good at, and what the world needs

Use thoughtful, nuanced questions rather than generic advice. Help me see how this moment of disruption might be precisely the opportunity I've been waiting for to create something meaningful. Be warm but direct in challenging my limiting narratives.

What makes this prompt powerful is how it treats the psychological dimension as the crucial first step.

Because all the AI knowledge in the world won't help if you're too paralyzed to apply it.

The beautiful contradiction of this moment

Here's what fascinates me about where we find ourselves:

At the exact moment when technology is becoming more capable than ever, our uniquely human qualities—our creativity, emotional intelligence, and ability to imagine what doesn't yet exist—are becoming our most valuable assets.

The corporations making these layoffs? They're optimizing for efficiency, for cost-cutting, for shareholder value.

But the real opportunity isn't in optimization. It's in creation.

There has never been a better time to be someone who dreams of bringing something new into the world.

When the traditional path isn't even "safe" anymore…

Why not build the thing that lights you up and create ways to monetize that?

The question that changes everything

Instead of asking "How do I survive the AI revolution?" try asking:

What am I uniquely positioned to create now that these tools exist?

What would I create if you knew you couldn't fail?

That shift—from fear to possibility, from survival to creation—changes everything.

I'd love to hear what comes up for you. What have you been dreaming of creating? What's been holding you back? Where do you see your unique opportunity in this shifting landscape?

Just hit reply. I read every message.

Until next week,

Your AI Solopreneur Bestie,

Elena

P.S. If you know someone who's feeling uncertain about their future in this AI moment, please forward this to them. Sometimes we all need a reminder that disruption creates possibility.