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Summary

There may have been a time when it was quaint or contrarian cool to claim ineptitude with technology, but no longer. The COVID-19 crisis offers a great opportunity for you to get GREAT at using technology for your work and your life.

Full Transcript

I just wanted to talk a little bit today about the opportunity that this COVID-19 response represents in terms of your use of technology.

You know, for a while it was kind of quaint or contrarian to be like, "Oh, I'm terrible with technology" or "I don't really know how to do that.” For a time, being a Luddite was maybe kind of cool; no longer.

But there came a point where it became odd. Now, it’s a matter of survival, right?

Or, at least, if not survival, it’s a modern-day necessity.

If you’re somebody who has been reluctant to learn how to use something like Zoom, or even to take the time to get really good at something like Zoom, or using video with your phone…this is the time to get really good at it. Because all of that is no longer just kind of a hobby.

Getting good at technology is more than a necessary work skill, it’s a necessary life skill. For example, if you don’t have the right app or you don’t know how to use the right app, you very likely may find yourself in a position where you can’t have groceries delivered when you can no longer go buy groceries in a store because all the stores are closed, and they’re only doing deliveries.

Look, everybody can get better at technology and it’s changing all the time. You can’t really think, “I’m just going to learn technology and I’ll be done” or “I’ll just read a manual.”

No, you’ve got to use it to get good at it for your work and your life. I would argue that if you can get good at technology, especially the cutting-edge stuff, you’ll win.

This is the perfect time to get at doing video and communicating remotely by telephone and video chat, because it’s now a necessity.

Right now it’s a matter of a lot of people’s livelihoods. So, for your work, I would humbly suggest that this is a time for you to get really good at technology. Mess around with it, you can’t break it, just do it. Get really good at it.

Try one new thing at a time, even if it scares you. Because, if you do, I’m pretty sure it will help you win at work.

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