Evolving the Game
What happens when the environment changes faster than your ability to adapt?
The agricultural revolution transformed society over 7,000 years. The industrial revolution took 140 years. AI is transforming everything in a decade.
The Luddites didn't riot because machines were bad. They rioted because 70% of jobs disappeared faster than humans could find new ones. The government hanged 24 people publicly trying to stop the rebellion.
We're not facing a technology problem. We're facing a speed problem.
No One Is Coming to Save You
The government wasn't ready 10 years ago. They're not ready now. They may never be ready in time. Policy operates on years. Technology operates on months. The gap is widening.
You don't need institutions to be ready. You need you to be ready.
That means developing three specific skills.
The Three Pattern Skills
| Skill | What It Is | What It Creates |
|---|---|---|
| Recognition | See what's coming before others | Fear disappears—you've seen this rhyme before |
| Utilization | Use what you see | Power—you invest, build, and lead better |
| Creation | Develop new patterns | Irreplaceability—you're the pilot, not the passenger |
Pattern Recognition is seeing the rhyme in history.
People fear what looks unprecedented. But history doesn't repeat—it rhymes. Those who saw 2008 coming weren't prophets. They recognized patterns others missed. The skill doesn't predict the future. It recognizes that the future has patterns you can learn.
Pattern Utilization is acting on what you see.
Recognition alone is worthless. For thousands of years, humans wandered as hunter-gatherers, living in constant fear. What changed everything? We recognized the pattern of seasons—and then utilized it. Plant in spring. Protect in summer. Harvest in fall. Conserve in winter.
That single pattern, properly utilized, built civilization.
Once you recognize financial patterns, business patterns, technology patterns, you're no longer fearful. Once you use those patterns, you become powerful.
Pattern Creation is the ultimate level.
First you learn others' patterns—their songs, their techniques. Then you use those patterns to create. But eventually, you develop your own patterns. You become the creator.
In business, sports, any field—the GOATs create patterns that never existed before. They bring something to the table that's never been seen.
The Identity Shift
Most people are managers of their lives. Stressed. Reactive. Trying to control circumstances they can't control.
The future belongs to those who see themselves as creators.
When you shift from "I manage problems" to "I create solutions," everything changes. External circumstances stop dictating your life. You start dictating your outcomes.
AI is a rocket. But it doesn't know where to go. You're the pilot. You set the destination. You direct the intelligence toward outcomes that matter.
You won't be replaced by AI. You'll be replaced by someone who uses AI better than you.
Games as Training Ground
Where do you develop these skills?
Games are the original feedback loop technology. The tightest loops we have.
| Pattern Skill | Game Type That Trains It | Why It Works |
|---|---|---|
| Recognition | Strategy games, prediction markets | Immediate feedback on what you saw vs what happened |
| Utilization | Coordination games | Use patterns to achieve shared objectives |
| Creation | Sandbox/creative games, game design | Build systems from scratch, test novel patterns |
Chess teaches pattern recognition. Poker teaches utilization under uncertainty. But team sports and multiplayer coordination games teach something deeper: how to see, use, and create patterns with others.
Coordination games are positive-sum. That's where the real compounding happens.
Gaming before cognitively demanding work improves performance. Regular gamers anticipate second, third, fourth-order consequences better than non-gamers. Gamers develop collaboration with AI, managing bot programs, working in virtual environments—skills increasingly essential for the future.
The question isn't whether to play. It's which games develop which patterns.
The Matrix
What combination of Character, Capabilities, and Drive enables valued contribution?
| Low Character | High Character | |
|---|---|---|
| High Capability | Dangerous—skilled but untrustworthy | Leader—creates patterns others follow |
| Low Capability | Irrelevant—nothing to offer | Trustworthy—valued for integrity, learning fast |
Capabilities without character is a liability. Character without capabilities is potential. The combination creates irreplaceable value.
| Pattern Skill | Primary Driver | Development Path |
|---|---|---|
| Recognition | Capabilities | Games, deliberate practice, feedback loops |
| Utilization | Drive | Coordination with others, skin in the game |
| Creation | Character | Ship things, take responsibility, mentor others |
The Call
The agricultural transition gave people generations to adapt. The industrial transition gave people decades. The AI transition gives you years.
The call to adventure is here. AI is that call.
The question isn't whether you'll answer.
Which patterns are you creating vs consuming?
The Playbook
| Stage | Tight Five Position | The Question |
|---|---|---|
| Why this matters | Purpose | Speed is the threat—adapt or be adapted |
| What truths guide you | Principles | Manager vs Creator identity |
| What do you control | Platform | The three pattern skills |
| What do you see others don't | Perspective | Games as training ground |
| How do you know it's working | Performance | Patterns created vs consumed |
Next: Evolve your agency or play the game.