Daniel Priestley: Plumbers Will Earn More Than Lawyers! I Predicted 2008, Now I'm Warning About 2029

Mar 16, 2026 2h 2m 16 insights
Daniel Priestley, an award-winning serial entrepreneur, discusses how AI and robotics are transforming the economy. He shares essential entrepreneurial skills, new business opportunities, and the importance of human connection and personal branding to thrive in this rapidly changing world.
Actionable Insights

1. Identify Unique Human Value

Focus on what only you, as a human, can say or do, drawing from your lived experiences and personal story, as this is irreplaceably human and highly relatable in an AI-dominated world. This includes creating content that fosters genuine relationships and connection with your audience.

2. Adopt Entrepreneurial Mindset

Learn the six steps entrepreneurs follow: identify opportunity, prototype fast/cheap experiments, validate market/product, go to market, scale up, and exit, applying this process to new initiatives or problems. This mindset helps you see problems as opportunities and approach them with agency.

3. Build a Personal Brand

Position yourself so 2,000 to 20,000 people know who you are, what you do, and your experiences, making you visible for opportunities in an increasingly AI-generated content landscape. This ensures your ‘airplane is already above the fog’ of AI content.

4. Play with AI Tools Daily

Actively experiment with AI tools by giving them your hardest problems, rather than just using them for simple searches, to discover innovative solutions and develop a bias towards change. This demonstrates curiosity and adaptability, which employers seek.

5. Focus on Small, Dynamic Businesses

Aim to build a business with 1-5 million in revenue and a team of around 10 people, as these are more achievable and resilient to disruption than large corporations. This approach prioritizes lifestyle, flexibility, and interesting work over hyper-growth.

6. Validate Business Ideas Quickly

Conduct fast, cheap experiments, like setting up waiting lists, to gauge market interest and validate ideas before investing heavily. This prevents rookie entrepreneurs from going ‘all in’ on unproven concepts.

7. Leverage AI for Niche SaaS

Explore creating small Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) companies for tiny niches, as AI has dramatically reduced development costs and customer requirements. These can be highly profitable with 500-1,000 customers and a small team.

8. Combine Software with Community

Differentiate your software products by integrating them with a community, education, training, and real-world experiences. This creates a defensible ecosystem that goes beyond a mere tool, which is easily commoditized by AI.

9. Explore Blue-Collar Trades

Consider careers in traditionally devalued blue-collar work like plumbing or electrical trades, as market distortions from government policies have created a shortage, making them highly profitable and in-demand. These roles are less susceptible to AI automation.

10. Practice Pause, Reflect, Document

Regularly step away from noise and technology to pause, reflect, and journal with a pen and paper in nature. This practice helps connect dots, gain clarity, and foster deeper understanding of your experiences and the bigger picture.

11. Write to Deepen Understanding

Prioritize writing frequently as a proxy for understanding, as it forces you to condense complex ideas and develop better questions. This skill is crucial for effective interaction with AI and generating true innovation.

12. Cultivate Wide Reference Points

Intentionally seek diverse information and experiences outside your comfort zone and primary field to foster innovation. Combining disparate ideas, like calligraphy and computers, leads to unique breakthroughs.

13. Embrace Product/Service Ecosystem

Develop multiple streams of income and offerings (e.g., speaking, books, software, coaching) rather than relying on a single product or service. This diversified ecosystem provides financial resilience and allows for creative expression.

14. Start with Side Hustles

Begin your entrepreneurial journey with side hustles or apprenticeships to build confidence and gain experience without making a large financial leap. This allows for gradual transition and learning from smaller, more dynamic businesses.

15. Consider Buying Boomer Business

Look for opportunities to acquire businesses from baby boomers who are retiring, as two-thirds of the economy’s businesses by valuation will change hands soon. These owners are often willing to fund you if you present well.

16. Treasure Relationships and Moments

Recognize that relationships are the most valuable aspect of life and actively treasure moments with loved ones. This perspective helps prioritize what truly matters amidst the pursuit of professional success.