The New Default

What's emerging as the new default is that everyone is responsible for some version of direction. You're directing AI, or you're directing other people who are using AI, or you're making calls about what work should be done and what the standard is. The mechanics of execution are increasingly automated. The work that's left is judgment and taste.

This creates a requirement that didn't exist as acutely before: everyone needs to take seriously the development of judgment and taste as core professional skills. Not just leaders. Not just people in certain roles. Everyone. Because everyone is now responsible for recognizing good work and deciding what's worth doing.

The good news is that judgment and taste can be developed deliberately. It's slower than learning a technical skill, and it's more dependent on exposure and experience. But it's not magic. It's a skill like any other—one that improves with practice and attention.