Both entrepreneurship and technology were once fringe activities. Saying you worked for yourself or you were an entrepreneur was often interpreted by the other party as admitting you were unemployed, or even unemployable, the last refuge of the unskilled and unwanted. So too with technology, that weird stuff nerds did late at night in garages with chemistry sets and soldering irons. Now these two activities are reshaping our economy and our futures, whether we pay attention to them or not. We must all upgrade our skills in these areas if we want to remain relevant and independent in the modern economy. No doubt you've got used to having to upgrade your technology devices and software. Every time that message pops up on our screen, we should ask ourselves, ‘When was the last time I upgraded my own software? When did I last download a new module to make myself more useful and more in demand in the marketplace?'

Upgrading our grey matter is no longer a choice. It's a kind of ongoing economic hygiene check, in which small regular interventions ensure our long-term economic health. And it's easy to do if we do it regularly. It's a game of frequency, not depth. This last section of the book, ‘Reinvention', is designed to show you the hacks you can use to make you as a person future proof, more so than any company you work for. You'll then have the choice of working for them or for yourself. These chapters will help you unlock the natural talents buried deep in your own humanity — the talent to explore, to try new things, to learn from your mistakes, to serve others, to use your imagination and to become a lot more entrepreneurial in your approach to life. You'll see how safe and low risk economic exploration can be, and how easy it is to leverage emerging technology using the skills you already have, because quite frankly, if you can read you can do it. The most difficult thing a human being can learn is language; when it comes to computational complexity, natural language processing is still up there at the top, so I know you can do it. You'll see how a little bit often can have a huge impact later. Here we need to remember the law of relatively: everyone can, but most people won't. Your success will depend on the effort you put in compared with others.