Never in history was knowledge so universally available. In the past, you relied on the stock in the local library and the chance that someone with a particular set of skills would live in your area. Today, things are completely different.
You have the complete knowledge of mankind at the tip of your fingers. Sure, sometimes this knowledge is behind a paywall, but even then, these courses often cost less than what you spend on one night of dining out. More importantly, even the amount of free knowledge available is just incredible.
The only reason why you aren’t taking advantage of this is procrastination.
This should end in 2024.
We’re not even talking about things like climate change and geopolitics. Instead, we’re talking about aspects that, although not as important on a global scale, have the potential to completely change your life as we know it.
With all that in mind, here are the top five things you must know more about by the end of 2024.
1. Generative AI
Generative AI has done one of the most incredible things in human history. It has allowed everyone to be creative in a completely unrestricted and fun way. People with brilliant ideas who lacked the technical skills to make them come to life now have their hands free and the world is their oyster.
Now, everyone is familiar with ChatGPT and the way it can write texts of any kind. The more you play around with prompts, the better. Sure, it has some ethical limitations, but if you’re determined enough (and willing to gaslight it a bit) there’s no limit to what you can achieve in this sense.
Other than this, you can also use generative AI to write code. It can create code from scratch or predict the code that you’re creating. It can also review the code that you have created and find errors. In other words, it’s useful for complete laypeople and senior developers alike.
Next to generating texts, images are the most common type of content made in these tools. Once again, it all depends on how detailed you are and how vivid your imagination is. Remember that the NLP of these tools is quite sophisticated, which means that they’ll understand the assignment.
Ultimately, the pleasure of trying these tools is something you don’t want to deny yourself.
2. Cryptocurrencies
Cryptos are huge, but they’re going to be even bigger in the future. This is why the sooner you learn more about them, the better.
We’re not just talking about you mastering the definition of cryptocurrencies. You need to learn how to buy them, sell them, and track their performance.
We’re not just talking about the biggest cryptos like BTC and ETH. While these are household names for a reason, you also need to learn about some of the best smaller cryptos out there. According to Yash Majithia of Techopedia, there’s a list of upcoming cryptos with great utility and promise. Yet, he adds how the best new cryptos often launch with much greater price potential than 300% returns, but come with a far larger risk factor associated. Therefore, you must do your research, because learning about some of them in time might open up an opportunity for great investments.
It’s also important that you learn about crypto-related and crypto-adjacent terms and technologies.
First of all, while they have suffered a blow in 2022, NFTs are still far from over. They’re still a trend with amazing potential and something that might greatly contribute to solving copyright issues in the modern digital world.
The most important of crypto-related technologies, however, is the blockchain – the future of online security. This trend makes self-fulfilling contracts, the immutability of online data, and more a possibility. In other words, it’s the crypto-related trend with the greatest potential.
3. Financial literacy
Your finances are more important than you think. A lot of people believe that the problem lies in the fact that you’re not making enough money. Sure, this could be true to an extent, but you can never outearn bad spending habits. The problem’s not just that you aren’t making enough – it’s the fact that you’re not making enough for your intended lifestyle.
Remember, there’s no such thing as absolute financial status, only a relative one. Sure, Jeff Bezos is rich anywhere on the planet, but what about people who are not Jeff Bezos? For instance, if you make $100k per year in Nebraska, you’re quite well off. However, if you make $100k while living in Manhattan, suddenly, things are not looking so great.
Naturally, the first thing you need to learn is budgeting. Setting your budget, tracking your income and expenses, and setting financial goals need to come first.
Next, you need to learn a few things about debt management, as well as saving and investment. These two areas of finance will set you up for the long run. While you’re at it, you might want to go ahead and learn how the credit score works.
Ultimately, it’s incredibly important that you understand taxation. This is supposed to keep you safe from the legal perspective.
4. Health and wellness
A lot of people ignore believe that people were healthier in the past. This is really not true but even for the parts that sound logical, there’s a great explanation. In the past, there was a lot less temptation.
First of all, the food was scarcer and of a higher quality. You see, the human body was never designed to have an availability of 8,000 kcal per day. It was built to live on sustenance of as much as they could forage. Sugars and fats, the most caloric of foods, were never available in abundance, which made maintaining a healthy body weight easy.
Also, a sedentary lifestyle was something reserved only for royalty, nobility, and the wealthiest of individuals. Today, it’s applied to a huge part of the population. Not only do they not have to go out for work, a lot of people spend their free time sedentary.
This is why it takes extra knowledge to stay fit and healthy in the modern world. Learn more about health, nutrition, calories, and exercise. Download an app or two to help you out!
We’re not just talking about physical health, either. Finding ways through which you can boost your mental health is one of the most important things you can do. Adopting a healthy hobby, meditating, and even reading short books can drastically improve the way you feel about yourself.
5. Networking
Lastly, networking is a skill, and whoever tries to convince you that it’s some sort of innate (almost mystical) ability is selling you a lie. Sure, some people have temperaments and aptitudes that make this come naturally to them, but it’s nothing that you can’t learn.
Start reading a bit on the subject matter in books like “How to Win Friends and Influence People.” Then, consider geting a course or two on the subject matter.
Most importantly, you have to practice. Even if you could download all the knowledge in the world into your brain, you need real-life practice. Socialize, attend events, and try to apply some of the principles you’ve learned. That’s right – principles, not techniques.
With every new skill, you unlock new possibilities
Knowledge is available and accessible, and it will determine your future. The last thing you want is to deny yourself the privilege of developing and honing a skill that can help you lead a better, more fulfilling life. Regardless if we’re talking about investing in crypto, using AI, or learning how to budget, each of these skills has the potential to transform your life. This is definitely worth pursuing in 2024.
Arman Ali, respects both business and technology. He enjoys writing about new business and technical developments. He has previously written content for numerous SaaS and IT organizations. He also enjoys reading about emerging technical trends and advances.
