Welcome to the 39th edition of the TOTR newsletter.
Let’s not waste time.
Vamos.
1. Quote to Think About
Real G’s move in silence like lasagne
- Dr Ana (YouTube psychologist and content creator)
This made me laugh out loud when I heard it. We can’t be serious all the time, can we?
2. An Insight Worth Considering
You’ve seen a school poster like this a thousand times.
If you saw it again, you'd probably stroke your chin and walk past it.
I visited a school last year and saw exactly that. I shook my head.
Because all 10 of those jobs are being severely disrupted by AI right now.
Half of them could become automated in the next 5 years.
Let that sink in for a second.
If a Year 7 student started school today aiming for one of those jobs, it might no longer exist by the time they graduate in 10 years.
It’s easy to dismiss what I am saying as ‘sensational fear mongering.’ Like Piers Morgan going after the latest 'wokism' and turning bright pink with incandescent rage.
But as someone who constantly creates content, AI has greatly assisted me in all these areas. So much so that I’ve cut back on hiring the freelancers I used to hire so regularly.
If little ol’ me is doing this, I want you to ponder what the multi-billion-pound corporations are doing.
Now, I'm not saying we should drop qualifications altogether.
Not at all.
But we have to have a major rethink on:
· what we educate our kids about
· how we actually do it
· what skills we prioritise
· what "success" even looks like in 2035
We're teaching 21st-century kids in 18th-century classrooms.
Same structures. Same assumptions. Same outdated career posters on the wall.
And honestly, that bothers me.
Because I've spent 17 years working with young people, and the ones who thrive aren't always the ones with the best grades.
They're the ones who can adapt, problem-solve, communicate, and think critically.
Education needs a major update. Sharpish.
Not in 10 years. Not after another government review.
Now.
And this is exactly the topic of Episode 5 of The Maverick School Podcast
In this special episode, I interview Eric Odotei, MBA, the esteemed Global Regulatory Head of an award-winning financial trading company, about how technology has changed his industry and how it will soon change everyone else's.
In the first-ever Maverick School Podcast interview, Eric breaks down the key challenges that emerging AI technology presents to young people starting out and how they can navigate these perilous times.
In this episode, you will learn:
- The #1 skill every young person should master to thrive in this new economy
- Why ‘permission is an illusion’ and ‘keeping your head down’ will halt your career
- Why social media is poisoning your life and the key mindset that’s the antidote
- How the emergence of AI is like facing a ‘fire-breathing dragon’ and what we can do to stop ourselves from being eaten by it.
Listen to it on your favourite podcasting platform here 😎👇🏾
Apple Podcasts
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep3-is-this-a-crisis-generation-pt-2/id1881678199?i=1000758248174
Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/episode/6AepyXSVwn88wRKMELwrIi?si=1DnJFxpNRCm5v88pBoS3Tw
Podbean
https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-t4w22-1a86a92
3. Resource to Explore
Here’s a great book I started reading called Supremacy by Pammy Olsen. Olsen is a Bloomsburg technology journalist who charts the rise of AI and the leading figures behind it: Sam Altman, Elon Musk and Peter Thiel.
It shows how their ambition, drive, and ruthlessness gave birth to this radical technology that has the power to change our entire society and may give these men unimaginable power beyond presidents and kings… And it might get a little dystopian…
I’ve started reading the book, and I’m gripped! It explains, in a very simple way, how money, technology, and power intersect, and why we must stay alert and fight for the rights these technologies may take away from us.
4. The Small Thing That Helped Me This Fortnight
Fruit smoothies – As the weather has improved, I’m off the cuppas, and now I make myself and the family fresh smoothies. Helps me get some of my 5 a day, it’s low-fat and keeps me off the chocolate biscuits. What’s not to love? 😂
Get yourself a half-decent blender, and you’re away (I just hate the washing-up part!).
5. A Question to Sit With
This was the first-ever question I asked a guest on my podcast, so why should I let them have all the fun? So I pose the same question to you:
“If I could open a 60-second portal to talk to your 18-year-old self, what would you say to them and what would you warn them about?”
That’s it for today.
The next newsletter comes out on Thursday, 14th May 2026.
Until then, take care.
Karl
