HAVING just a degree and years of experience could make you a second bencher –we’re on the cusp of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (or Industry 4.0).
Industry 4.0 will be marked by lightning-speed advancements and mind-boggling change. Artificial Intelligence is going to change everything.
Advanced nations will expect these top skills in human resource as the future supply chain skews toward regions south of Tropic of Cancer, due to connectivity, leading to rate dilution, and the need for better bang for the dollar.
All these skills would require cognitive flexibility
Cognitive flexibility is all about being a mental gymnast with the ability to utilize different ways of thinking (e.g. the creative brain, mathematical brain, critical thinking brain etc.) — cognitive flexibility is how quickly (and easily) you can swing, leap and twirl back and forth between different systems of thought.
So how do we flex our cognitive muscles? By learning new things and in particular, learning new ways of thinking. If you’re ‘not a creative type’, make it a point to learn an instrument, take up hip-hop dancing or try your hand at an art class. If you’ve got the soul of a creative, but your eyes glaze over when you hear words like ‘financial markets’ or ‘the economy’, make it your mission to read, think, understand, analyze and step beyond the bonded rationality.
Irshad Salim, Islamabad
