301: Creating a Vision and Strategy in the Age of AI with Dr. Mehdi Nourbakhsh

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Written by Tammy Gooler Loeb

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301: Creating a Vision and Strategy in the Age of AI with Dr. Mehdi Nourbakhsh

When work stops feeling satisfying, it is easy to assume that the answer is a complete career change. Sometimes, that is the right next step. But before making a big decision, it can help to look more closely at the environment you are in and what it is making possible.

Dr. Mehdi Nourbakhsh’s career offers a useful example. He studied structural engineering and learned to automate much of his work with coding. At first, he enjoyed the challenge. Over time, though, he realized he was no longer learning. He asked his CEO whether he could move into construction management. That change helped him discover how much he enjoyed working with teams and managing the human side of projects.

His path continued to evolve. He pursued graduate studies, combined his engineering knowledge with computer science, worked on AI at Autodesk, and later started a company to help small to medium sized businesses understand and apply AI. Each move built on what came before, while bringing him into a different environment and a new set of challenges.

This is one way the Be a CEO of Your Career framework can show up in everyday decisions. Curiosity helps you step into learning, expanding your knowledge, skills and perspectives. Engagement is all about the relationships and connections you make, old and new, that enrich your world, contribute to your growth and open up new opportunities. Ownership means living confidently in alignment with your core values so that you feel grounded when making decisions and changes to move your life forward with intention. Mehdi’s path shows how a career shift can begin with one observation and a willingness to explore.

Mehdi shared an analogy about a bottle of water. The same bottle may cost much less at a warehouse store than it does at an airport. The water has not changed. The environment changes how it is valued.

Careers can work that way, too. The strengths you bring may be overlooked in one role or workplace and highly valued in another. That does not mean you have to quit your job immediately. A new project, client, team, or responsibility might offer a different way to use what you already know.

This is where curiosity can help. Instead of asking only, “Should I leave?” try asking:

  • What parts of my work still interest me?

  • Where do I feel useful and engaged?

  • What skills or strengths am I not getting to use?

  • Is there another project, team, or client I could explore?

  • What small conversation could help me learn more?

Taking ownership of your career does not require knowing exactly what comes next. It can begin with noticing what is and is not working, exploring your options, and taking one practical step.

Mehdi also spoke about the fear many people feel around AI. He compared it to seeing a lion nearby. The same lion can feel very different depending on whether you are exposed to danger or safely behind glass. His point was that fear often grows when we believe we have no control. Learning about AI, experimenting with it, and identifying how it might apply to your work can help you move from feeling paralyzed to taking action.

You do not have to make a sweeping change to begin shaping your next chapter. Start with curiosity about your current environment, then choose one move that gives you more information and more choice.

In This Week's Podcast, Learn More About:

  • How curiosity led Mehdi to connect computer science with real-world engineering problems

  • Why automating his structural engineering work prompted him to seek new challenges

  • How working in construction management helped him discover his interest in people and teams

  • What he learned about AI’s potential from his research and work at Autodesk

  • Why leaders should decide what they want their organizations to become before choosing AI tools

  • How learning can help people respond to AI-related uncertainty with more agency

  • Why changing your work environment can leverage your strengths and increase the visibility of your contributions to be seen

  • A reflection exercise: title the chapters of your life so far, then consider what you want the next chapter to hold

Learn more:

Your CEO of Your Career Move:

Think about a part of your work that no longer feels challenging or nourishing. Before assuming you need to make a complete change, get curious about the environment around you. Could a different project, client, team, or role within your organization give your strengths more room to grow?

Choose one small step to explore that possibility. A conversation with a colleague or manager can help you learn what options are available.

Interested in individual or group coaching with Tammy?  Learn more about her coaching service.

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Affiliate Links: Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links above are “affiliate links”. This means that if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products and services I use personally and believe will add value to my listeners. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

 

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About Tammy, host of
Work from the Inside Out

Before launching my coaching practice, I worked in mental health, higher education, public policy, and fundraising. Those experiences showed me how deeply our work shapes our sense of purpose—and now I help clients navigate change and growth so they can feel more fulfilled and aligned in what they do

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300: Be the C.E.O. of Your Career: Work from the Inside Out Doesn’t Mean Working Alone with Connie Steele