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Make Your Polywork Value Greater than the Sum of Your Tasks
Our story
Long before the mode of work known as polywork had been trending, many Filipinos were, in some sense, already "polyworking". One of our own family's small businesses is a simple example.
I was only pre-school-aged at a time when my father, a full-time employee in a local pharmaceutical corporation, and my mother, a full-time microbiology professor in a university, began a small mimeographing business to add to the family's income. They were mimeographing copies of exam sheets for professors who needed help in printing test papers for the university's final exams. My mother did the typing while my father did the mimeographing. An elderly aunt of the family also helped my parents collate and organize the test papers after the mimeographing process [1].
That multijob situation is like polywork at its simplest and most uncomplicated form. No doubt, other Filipinos also did multijob modes of earning for a living even before my parents' time. But now, with AI deployment in polywork, anyone can do more than the power of the mimeograph. And this is the valuable multiplier effect that polywork can do with AI now.
Unlock Key Signposts to Polywork Your Way to Success W/ AI
You can transform polyworking into a strong pathway for sustained growth in the AI era. By integrating essential human skills, smart energy management, AI as an amplifier, financial resilience through diversified income streams, and expanded digital reach through community, this strategic approach multiplies your overall value, financial security, and personal fulfillment.
This blog post will suggest five key signposts to help you integrate and unlock success with AI in Polywork.
- Signpost 1: How to cultivate human skills which AI still finds hard to automate
- Signpost 2: How to do what you love to master health & smart energy management
- Signpost 3: How to leverage AI as your polywork amplifier for leads to income streams
- Signpost 4: How to monetize diverse skill sets across various industries and clients
- Signpost 5: How to leverage digital platforms and community to expand reach
Post 1: Cultivating human skills that AI still finds hard to automate
For Filipinos, AI will find hard to automate skills that are founded on values that are distinctly culture's gifts in their skills delivery. They form a foundational ecosystem where values guide and motivate the development and application of skills, while the skills, in turn, manifest and strengthen those values in action. Here are some Filipino values that apply to the irreplaceable human skills:
- love of God and family OFWs put into their work to a heroic degree
- the pakikisama of Filipino workers bonding for the common good
- the bayanihan attitude which motivates Filipinos to work together in community
- and utang ng loob that enables Filipinos to be loyal to their employers [2]
Some modern studies report that these values that motivate the irreplaceable skills are on the way out. But they are only seeing the liability side of that "coin". There is greater value when you flip the coin to its bright asset side, with hopes of resurgence.
When you look at the bright side, certain human abilities of Filipinos that are still hard to automate by AI serve as a strong foundation for valuable work with employers and with the self-employed. As Filipino families work hard for the education of their children, the family can work with employers who value their university-educated skills. These university-educated skills can easily embody the global human skills of:
- empathy, strategic decision-making, adaptability, trust-building, emotional intelligence, ethical judgment, and brand storytelling at work [3].
When Filipinos focus on developing their unique human capabilities, they can contextualize AI's output with nuanced human understanding, build deeper relationships with clients and teams, and infuse their work with authenticity and a unique brand voice that AI cannot replicate. This amplifies the quality and impact of their contributions at work, leading to greater value creation that transcends mere efficiency.
Post 2: Do what you love to master health & smart energy management
Was there ever a time that you did not like your job or the way things were going in life? The act of not liking drains a lot of energy. But, was there ever a time that you loved or began to love the work and life you live? That certainly builds energy. Do not waste it. For managing energy, more than just time, is the key to unlock the multiplier effect that will not only add to your income streams, but also add to the happiness and well-being we seek.
Managing energy is a concept that was studied well by Loehr and Schwartz in "The Power of Full Engagement". They report that managing your physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual energy is crucial for sustained high performance. They coined a term called "oscillation". This concept involves alternating between periods of intense effort and recovery to prevent burnout and instead build reserves of energy for the capacity needed in work. Practical applications of their study include producing:
- dynamic workspaces where you alternate between desks - one for sitting, the other for standing [4]
- schedules for strategic micro-breaks to recover from a decrease in physical, emotional, or mental energy levels
- time for workouts adapted to build the energy levels you need to sustain the quantity, quality, focus, and force of energy in your work performance [5]
What helps energy management in unlocking the multiplier effect of your polywork with AI is the discipline of self-awareness or mindfulness. With a strong self-awareness, you can consciously manage your energy and ensure that you have the reserves and focus to perform optimally across all your polyworking roles. A strong self-awareness enables you to maximize productivity during peak hours and ensures sustained output and creativity, preventing the "split attention" that can reduce work quality. The ability to consistently deliver high-quality work, fueled by well-managed energy, multiplies your overall effectiveness and earning potential [6].
Post 3: Use AI as your polywork amplifier for income streams
Before one receives the income stream that is worked for, working for leads is a priority. To work for leads, one only has to harness the power of AI as a polywork amplifier and generator. For web producers and content creators, one important technique is mastering the marketing needed to adhere to the EEAT guidelines preferred by Google. EEAT stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness in producing high-quality, people-first content [7].
- Experience: Share personal anecdotes, case studies, or first-hand experiences to add authenticity.
- Expertise: Showcase expert knowledge or verified information from industry experts.
- Build backlinks from reputable sites and ensure content is recognized by authoritative sources.
- Trustworthiness: Base content on accurate, research-oriented data with proper citations.
The application of E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) ensures that AI-assisted content remains high-quality and trustworthy. If you integrate the right AI tools, such as LLMs (Large Language Models) for your work, those LLMs allow you to free up significant time and mental energy for higher-value activities like decision-making in content strategy. Mental energy that focuses on producing more leads is vital in discovering valuable income streams. Such a content strategy accelerates your output and expands your capacity to take on diverse projects, effectively multiplying your productivity-value and enabling you to explore more opportunities within an AI-driven economy where income streams are plentiful [8].
Symbolic GEN AI image: Remote-work professionals using human skills, smart energy management, AI-deployment, diversified income stream strategies, and digital platforms for market reach
Post 4: Monetize diverse skills across industries & clients
Polyworking within a Philippine context is possible because of remote work opportunities. Filipinos can engage in multiple paid jobs or income-generating activities simultaneously, such as an MSME startup for networking. These directly contribute to financial resilience.
- Diversified Income Streams: Individuals or MSME startups can monetize diverse skill sets across various fields. This creates multiple income streams and enhanced job security. By diversifying, you can mitigate income risk and build resilience against economic fluctuations or job market disruptions, such as layoffs caused by AI advancements.
- Future-Proofing: This blog suggests the combination of human skills, smart energy management, and AI leverage to help you future-proof your career and to allow you to establish a contingency fund [9].
- Leveraging Existing Skills for New Income: This blog offers suggestions for new income streams that include AI content fact-checking, e-commerce coaching for MSMEs, freelance writing focused on AI/e-commerce, developing niche online guides/ebooks, and LinkedIn profile optimization services, all in the context of web production and MSME e-commerce. These avenues directly support income diversification.
By not relying on a single source of income, you mitigate financial risk and establish a robust safety net, which is particularly vital during unpredictable economic times such as now. This diversification not only ensures current stability but also provides the flexibility and intellectual capital to invest in continuous upskilling and new ventures, thereby multiplying your valuable, long-term earning potential and career security. Update your search online for sources to monetize your valuable skills [10].
Post 5: How to leverage digital communities to expand reach
It is important to regularly upskill in AI technologies and stay aware of current industry trends to remain competitive and adaptive. You can leverage platforms like LinkedIn for professional development and networking.
As an MSME or blogger, you can also reinforce the value of community building and reciprocal linking as a collaborative strategy for expanding reach and supporting collective success. Just adhere to and align with ethical guidelines for community-building online in various social media platforms. There are numerous channels for marketing and service delivery, particularly enhanced by AI and community building. Our blog, Rosauro's Legacy Archive, can serve as a digital information hub and a platform for social media connections and for sharing insights and resources with MSMEs and WFH professionals.
You can also leverage market reach in established digital platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and X (Twitter). These digital community platforms are crucial for professional development, networking, and staying informed about relevant industries and government agencies like the DTI.
For the production of content to expand market reach online, a "zero-click strategy" is suggested as also relevant for web producers and MSME startups who aim to build brand authority. With zero-click strategy, even if users don't click through to your blog or website, you are making the online community aware of your AI-powered blog or website as you optimize for featured snippets, structured data, and high-intent queries.
Zero-click strategy can broaden your professional network where you discover new channels for marketing and service delivery. You only need to optimize your online presence, adhere to SEO best practices, and consistently share valuable, person-first content. This reinforces your expertise and trustworthiness, making you a recognized authority in your chosen field. It also amplifies your reputation, attracts more opportunities, and multiplies your impact and influence in the digital landscape [11].
Polywork as a Pathway to Sustained Value and Fulfillment
By consciously integrating the five signposts of human skills, smart energy management, deployment of AI as an amplifier, building financial resilience through diversified income, and expanding your reach via digital platforms and community, you can transform your polyworking endeavors into a strong, powerful pathway for sustained growth. This strategic approach enables you to unlock a significant multiplier effect in your overall value, financial security, and personal and professional fulfillment in the evolving AI era.
