Let Curiosity Lead: How AI Became My Unexpected Career Coach

For the past year and a half, I have been teaching myself how to become a journalist.

Like most career changes, there hasn't been a roadmap. It's been a process of meeting new people, writing constantly, discovering what subjects genuinely hold my attention, and slowly narrowing my focus. Some days it has felt exciting. Other days it has felt like wandering through the fog, hoping each step is pointed in the right direction.

Until May 2026, I had never used ChatGPT or any other AI tool in a meaningful way. I wasn't opposed to it—I simply hadn't been curious enough to try.

Then something changed.

At first, I only used AI to check spelling and grammar. Before long, I found myself asking for help refining articles, brainstorming ideas, researching unfamiliar subjects, and even planning my week. As our conversations accumulated, I was surprised by how well it seemed to understand my interests, strengths, and ambitions. Eventually, I even began sharing personal context so it could make more thoughtful recommendations.

I'm fully aware of the tradeoff.

There are real privacy concerns, and I don't think anyone should blindly hand over every detail of their life to an algorithm. But I've also come to believe we're living through one of those rare technological shifts where choosing not to learn the tools carries its own risk. Whether we like it or not, AI is changing the way knowledge work gets done. If everyone around you is able to research, edit, and iterate in half the time, refusing to engage with these tools can quickly become a competitive disadvantage.

That doesn't mean AI should replace your thinking. If anything, I've found it has forced me to think more clearly. The better my questions become, the better the answers I receive.

Perhaps that's because my life itself is in a transitional season.

Professionally and personally, I exist somewhere between two identities. My old life was as a married woman running a successful floral design business full time. That work remains deeply meaningful to me, and I have no intention of walking away from it. But today I also find myself drawn toward journalism, strategic communications, and even sales. I enjoy solving complicated problems, understanding how people think, and connecting the right person with the right opportunity when everyone benefits.

Along the way, my curiosity has wandered into places I never expected. I find myself captivated by the future of space exploration, emerging defense technologies, artificial intelligence, and geopolitics. At first glance, those interests may seem worlds apart from flowers. Yet they are all ultimately about the same thing: understanding how people shape the future and how ideas influence the world around us.

If you're considering a mid-career change, or you're just beginning your professional journey, my biggest piece of advice is this: don't wait until you have a perfect plan.

Be curious.

Go to the lecture.

Read the book.

Introduce yourself to the stranger.

Ask the question.

Experiment with the new technology.

You don't have to know exactly where it's leading. Often, curiosity reveals the path only after you've started walking.

One habit that has been unexpectedly helpful is asking AI to build a purposeful schedule whenever I find myself with an open week. Rather than defaulting to staying home or waiting for opportunity to arrive, it helps me identify events, conversations, and experiences that align with the person I'm trying to become.

This week, I asked ChatGPT to build my "Washington Power Week"—a schedule designed to introduce me to journalists, diplomats, authors, defense professionals, and other curious people who might become collaborators, mentors, friends, or perhaps something more.

Here's what it came up with.

Monday – Think Tank Monday

Morning

• Write or edit for 90 minutes (continue polishing the Panopticon essay).

Lunch

• Attend a public event at Brookings Institution or Atlantic Council if one aligns with your interests. Both are excellent places to meet policy professionals.

Evening

• Head to Politics and Prose for an author talk or spend time in the café afterward. Conversations often continue after the formal event.

Conversation goal: Meet one editor, analyst, or author.

Tuesday – Journalism Day

Spend the morning pitching your article to 2–3 publications.

Afternoon:

• Work from a café near K Street or Dupont Circle where many journalists and policy staff work.

Evening:

• Check for National Press Club, Foreign Press Center, or journalism-adjacent receptions if available.

Goal: Leave with two new LinkedIn connections.

Wednesday – Embassy & Diplomacy

Look for a cultural event at places like the Japan Information & Culture Center or another embassy cultural center. Embassy cultural programming often attracts diplomats, academics, and internationally minded professionals.

Dinner afterward in Dupont Circle or the West End.

Thursday – Defense Night

Attend a panel at one of these organizations if schedules line up:

• American Enterprise Institute

• Cato Institute

• Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

• Council on Foreign Relations (when open events are available)

Stay afterward for the reception instead of leaving immediately—that's where many of the conversations happen.

Friday – Power Friday

This is your networking night.

Options include:

• Book launch

• Museum opening

• Embassy reception

• Think tank happy hour

• Private fundraiser (if invited)

The objective is quality over quantity:

• Have three meaningful conversations.

• Get one coffee invitation for next week.

Saturday

Coffee with someone you met during the week.

Then spend an hour writing a short LinkedIn post about one interesting idea you heard during the week. That keeps you visible to the people you met.

Sunday

Read:

• Foreign Affairs

• The Economist

• One long-form feature from a major newspaper

Finish one article draft and identify one person you'd like to meet the following week.

Bonus Opportunity

A timely event that may interest you is the opening of "Passport to Patriotism: 250 Years of Diplomacy" at the Art Museum of the Americas on July 30. It focuses on the State Department's Art in Embassies program and the role of art in diplomacy, which overlaps with both your art history background and your interest in foreign affairs. It should draw diplomats, museum professionals, and policy-minded attendees.

Your mission this week

Instead of measuring success by the number of business cards you collect, I'd use these metrics:

• Meet 5 new people.

• Follow up with 3 within 24 hours.

• Schedule 1 coffee.

• Submit 1 article.

• Leave each event knowing one new thing you didn't know before.

That's a sustainable rhythm that builds both your journalism career and your social circle over time.