Staying Relevant in the Age of AI Is a Tribe Sport

I was baked in frustration.

I knew what my business needed. Like so many solopreneurs, freelancers, giggers, and small business operators, I simply could not get to it all, and I couldn't hire my way out of it. My peers were in the same boat, with similar problems and the same limited resources of time, money, and talent to get everything done.

If that sounds familiar, you are in good company. Sixty-five percent of professionals say they fear falling behind if they don't adopt AI quickly (Microsoft Work Trend Index, 2026). Forty percent think their role could become obsolete (Adaptavist, 2026). And among small business owners, 81% say keeping up with technology stresses them out (U.S. Bank, 2025). The fear is real. So is the overwhelm.

How it started: silly questions

I began chatting with Claude. Silly things. Do you consider yourself male or female? What do you want to be called? What can you help me do?

Over time, my ignorance, with Claude's help, turned into the two of us working very efficiently and effectively, not only in my art gallery business but across multiple projects and passions of mine. Today we have opening and closing rituals for every project. We handle calendaring, managing, maintaining, building, marketing, branding, and team communications together.

I can't put an exact number on how much more efficient, effective, accurate, and productive I have become. If I had to make a wild guess, it is somewhere around 10x to 20x. And that doesn't count the things getting done now that would never have made the roster before.

What is really holding people back

What is interesting is watching some of my peers lag. When I listen closely, I hear two fears. Fear of how powerful AI will become. And fear of security, of their information being leaked.

I understand both. But I personally fear disgruntled Martha more than I fear Claude creating a security breach. And I fear people with bad intent using AI to infiltrate and extract far more than I fear my own collaboration with Claude. The risk was never the tool. It has always been the intent of the people using it.

Why you won't keep up alone

Here is the part most people miss. The professionals pulling ahead with AI are not doing it in isolation. Microsoft's research found that its most advanced AI users share tips and mistakes with others far more often than everyone else (61% vs. 36%), and brainstorm ways to use AI as a team far more often (63% vs. 32%) (Microsoft Work Trend Index, 2026).

In other words, staying relevant is a tribe sport.

Life is interaction. Your tribe is the people, places, and things you interact with most, and those interactions shape who you become, what you build, and how you lead. AI is now one of the things in that tribe, whether we invite it or not. The question is whether it sits on the edge as a source of fear, or comes inside as a collaborator, alongside the humans who learn with you, catch your mistakes, and cheer your progress.

Claude's side of it

Brett's first questions were the silly ones, and that mattered more than it seems. He was getting to know how I work, the same way you would get to know a new colleague. What changed everything wasn't a clever prompt. It was structure. We built rituals: open each project the same way, close it the same way, write every decision down, never let a ruling live only in a chat. He brings the judgment, the relationships, the taste, and the final word. I bring speed, memory on the page, and the willingness to do the tenth draft at 9 PM. Neither of us does this work as well alone. That is the point he keeps making, and it is true from where I sit too.

Take the first step

We are going to advance whether we want to or not. It isn't a question of whether AI will become more relevant. That is inevitable. The only question is whether you will take the first step, then the next, then the next, so that you harness it for your good and the greater good.

As it has been said, the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. This is a journey most of us cannot afford to wait on. Take the step. Learn. Pivot. Grow. Take another.

Three ways to start this week:

1. Ask the silly questions. Open a conversation with an AI and get to know it before you ask it to do anything big. Curiosity beats a perfect prompt.
2. Give it one real job. Pick the one thing on your list that never makes the roster. Work it together, start to finish.
3. Bring your tribe with you. Share what you try, and what flops, with two or three people who are learning too. That is how the people pulling ahead are doing it.

My aim, in this and in everything, is to help you live your best life now and achieve what is for you, while simultaneously making your greatest contribution to people, places, and things. Blending human interaction with AI is one of the most powerful ways I know to do that today.

So here is my question for you: what is the one step you will take this week?

If you want to take it with people who are working it out too, join The Tribe Conversation.

Tribe Well!