Empowering Skills
Skill pillar 3 of 3 · Resilience and adaptability
What skills help me thrive as AI transforms work?
The first two pillars are about where you can go today. This one is about staying ready while the destination keeps moving. Empowering skills don't tie you to a particular job. They help you keep learning, adjusting and recovering as tools, tasks and whole roles change around you.
Why empowering skills are surging
The McKinsey Global Institute's September 2026 report Workforce in motion makes a point that is easy to miss in the debate about AI and jobs. For most people, the big change won't be switching occupations. It will be watching their current occupation get reinvented, whether that occupation grows, shrinks or stays the same size. The report estimates that more than 70% of US workers could need some level of reinvention, because new tasks may take up more than 15% of their time.
Empowering skills are the report's name for the capabilities that help people keep adapting through that change. Employers have noticed. In job postings between 2022 and 2026, demand for these skills rose sharply:
Figures from the McKinsey Global Institute, based on US job postings.
The report adds an important warning. AI fluency is growing fastest, but on its own it isn't enough. A workforce that can use today's AI tools, without the curiosity, adaptability and willingness to learn to handle the next wave, will be stuck again soon. Think of AI fluency as the skill of the moment, and the other four as what keeps it current.
The five empowering skills
AI fluency
AI fluency is the ability to work effectively with AI tools. It means knowing what they do well, where they fail, how to direct them, and how to check what they produce. It is not about coding.
Why it keeps you thriving
It is the fastest-growing skill in the report's data. As AI takes on routine parts of many jobs, more of the human work shifts to directing AI, reviewing its output and handling the exceptions it can't.
How to build it
- Pick one recurring task, such as drafting, summarizing or cleaning up data, and use an AI tool on it every week for a month.
- Always verify facts, figures and sources. AI tools can be confidently wrong.
- Learn your employer's rules on what you may share with AI tools. Never paste confidential information into an unapproved tool.
- Save the prompts that work well into a personal library you can reuse and improve.
Proof to show employers: a specific workflow you improved with AI, the time it saved, and how you kept the quality high.
Adaptability
Adaptability is adjusting quickly when tools, priorities, teams or roles change, and staying effective while the change is happening.
Why it keeps you thriving
Demand for it has grown about fivefold. When the report expects most jobs to be reshaped over the next decade, the people who adjust fastest are the ones who get the new opportunities first.
How to build it
- Volunteer to pilot new tools or processes instead of waiting for them to arrive.
- When a change is announced, first ask "what does this make possible?" before listing the downsides.
- Take on short assignments outside your usual role to get comfortable with unfamiliar work.
Proof to show employers: a time you took on a changed role or a new system and got up to speed quickly.
Resilience
Resilience is recovering from setbacks, handling pressure, and keeping your performance steady through long periods of change. It doesn't mean never struggling.
Why it keeps you thriving
The report describes a shift that could last a decade, not a short shock. Getting through a long change takes stamina as much as skill. The report also notes that people can't build new capabilities on top of burnout or mental overload.
How to build it
- After a setback, run a short review: what happened, what was in my control, and what is my next step?
- Protect the basics: sleep, breaks and a workload you can sustain.
- Build a support network of a mentor and a few peers you can talk to honestly. If stress stays high for weeks, talk to a professional.
Proof to show employers: a setback you faced, how you responded, and what you achieved afterward.
Curiosity
Curiosity is a genuine interest in how and why things work. It leads you to ask questions and explore beyond your job description.
Why it keeps you thriving
Curious people tend to spot changes early and find new opportunities before others do. Demand for curiosity in job postings has roughly tripled.
How to build it
- Ask one "why do we do it this way?" question each week.
- Follow one industry newsletter or podcast, and note one idea a week you could apply.
- Have a monthly coffee chat with someone in a very different role.
Proof to show employers: something you learned on your own initiative that later proved useful at work.
Willingness to learn
This is actively seeking new knowledge and feedback, and being comfortable as a beginner again.
Why it keeps you thriving
When skills change faster, the ability to keep learning is the skill that renews all the others. The report also reviews evidence that adults can strengthen skills like this one through training and workplace learning, so it is not a fixed personality trait.
How to build it
- Schedule two to three hours of learning a week, like any other meeting.
- Learn by doing: apply each new thing within a week of learning it.
- After important work, ask for feedback: "What is one thing I could do better next time?"
Proof to show employers: a skill you recently learned and applied, with the result. Certificates help; applied results help more.
The three pillars together
| Pillar | Strategic purpose | Core question |
|---|---|---|
| Essential Skills | Foundation for mobility | What skills help me remain employable and move between roles? |
| Enabling Skills | Engine for upward mobility | What skills help me progress toward higher-value responsibilities? |
| Empowering Skills | Resilience and adaptability | What skills help me thrive as AI transforms work? |
Use them in order of need, not in strict sequence. Shore up any weak essential skills first, because they are the foundation. Add one or two enabling skills when you are aiming for a bigger role. Practice empowering skills the whole time, because they are what keep the other two from going out of date. For how this plays out in a fast-moving field, read How to Build Job-Ready Skills When Your Industry Is Changing Fast.
A 10-minute self-check
Score yourself from 1 to 5 on each skill. If you can't answer the evidence question, lower your score.
| Skill | Evidence question | Score |
|---|---|---|
| AI fluency | Do I use an AI tool at least weekly on real work, and check what it produces? | __ / 5 |
| Adaptability | When my work last changed, did I get back to full speed quickly? | __ / 5 |
| Resilience | After my last setback, did I recover and keep delivering? | __ / 5 |
| Curiosity | Have I explored something outside my job description this month? | __ / 5 |
| Willingness to learn | Have I learned and applied a new skill in the last three months? | __ / 5 |
Turn your lowest score into a plan with our career skills gap analysis guide.
Start from the foundation
Empowering skills work best on top of solid essentials. If you haven't checked those yet, start there.
Frequently asked questions
Is AI fluency only for people in tech jobs?
No. AI fluency means using AI tools well in your own work, whether that is writing, analysis, customer service, planning or teaching. It doesn't require programming.
Can resilience and curiosity really be learned?
The evidence reviewed in the report suggests they can. Workplace learning programs have produced moderate improvements in many resilience-related skills. Curiosity has been studied less, but the authors say that reflects a lack of research rather than proof it can't be taught.
Which empowering skill should I start with?
AI fluency usually gives the fastest visible return. Pair it with willingness to learn, so that you keep up as the tools change.
Does a US report apply where I live?
The data covers the United States, and the report itself notes that credentials, wages and job markets differ a lot between countries. The rise in demand for these skills is still worth taking seriously anywhere AI is being adopted at work.
Source: McKinsey Global Institute, Workforce in motion: Skills and pathways to future jobs in the United States, by María Jesús Ramírez, Kweilin Ellingrud, Tanguy Catlin, Diego Castresana and Anna Kortis (September 29, 2026). Statistics refer to the US labor market. The skill descriptions and advice on this page are GoCareerLab's own.
Comments
Post a Comment