MasterClass

Meet our #MasterClassExecutive Member of the Week. This is Ruben Adorno, who works as an Enterprise Partnerships Manager at Bloomberg. He was searching for MBA programs, and was "stoked" to instead become a founding member of MasterClass Executive. "The best part so far has been building my network and getting to do this along so many smart and talented people across the globe. I'm learning so much from the members in my cohort... [and] the world class instructors. The caliber of talent that we get access to is unmatched." Welcome, Ruben. We're so glad you're here. MasterClass Executive Cohort 2 is filling up now. Limited seats available. Learn how to apply here: https://mstr.cl/Exec-C2

Four words turn an objection into an agenda. Want more negotiation tactics? Our newest certificate, Negotiate to Win: Essentials for Leaders with Alexandra Carter is available now.

Last week, Kaitlyn G. taught our MasterClass Executive cohort how to build and prototype with AI. Her big takeaway: don't over-plan, start rough and let the tool help you figure it out. It got us curious. Where do you land?

Maureen Chiquet ran Chanel and Gap. And her sharpest advice to our MasterClass Executive cohort wasn't about pricing or luxury strategy. It was about data. Early in her career at Gap, she noticed something nobody was tracking: people on the street wearing big-buckle belts with their jeans. Gap sold one sad belt for $9.99. Nobody bought it. She found affordable Italian leather, built a real belt business out of a category that barely existed, and it took off. No dashboard told her to do that. She just paid attention. We talk a lot about data as something that lives in a spreadsheet or gets served up by AI. Maureen's point is simpler and harder to systematize: the sharpest business instincts often come from noticing what's already right in front of you. MasterClass Executive Cohort 2 is filling now. Limited seats available. Learn how to apply here: https://mstr.cl/Exec-C2

Last week, a cohort member asked Ethan Smith the question everyone in marketing is quietly asking: is AI search killing traditional search? His answer, in short: no. The data shows search usage is still climbing, and AI use is layering on top of it rather than replacing it. The lesson isn't really about SEO. It's a reminder to check the data before we accept the panic. Where else have you seen a "this is replacing that" narrative that the numbers don't actually support? Apply for MasterClass Executive now. Limited seats available: https://mstr.cl/Exec-C2

Five AI Labs down — and this has easily been one of the most valuable parts of the MasterClass Executive experience so far. What I’ve appreciated most is that the labs haven’t been about learning AI in the abstract. They’ve been about actually building with it. Over the last few weeks, I’ve had the chance to: - Work with Codex on real problems — including financial modelling and scenario analysis. parth patil - Use multiple agents to divide work, independently analyse scenarios, and bring the outputs back together. - Build skills and reusable context, rather than starting every interaction from scratch. - Run analyses on my local machine and explore how AEO — Answer Engine Optimization — actually works. Ethan Smith - Experiment with training and evaluating AI agents with micro1. Ali Ansari Rumi Elías Calles - Use ElevenLabs to push the creative side of AI — and get hands-on with multimedia in entirely new ways. Luke Harries Think more deeply about what should be delegated to AI, what needs human judgement, and how workflows themselves need to be redesigned. There are still more labs to come, and I’m looking forward to them! The shift from using AI to designing work with AI is becoming very real. The University of Chicago Booth School of Business

Ray Dalio built his career on a set of clear, tested decision-making principles for life and business. He credits his own success and his investment firm's success to this systematic approach. Join Ray Dalio, founder of Bridgewater Associates and author of Principles, alongside MasterClass founder and CEO, David Rogier, for a live conversation about the rules Ray relies on to decide under uncertainty and how human judgment holds up in the age of AI. Register now to learn Ray's framework for decision-making, ask your questions in a live Q&A, and get an inside look at MasterClass Executive. https://lnkd.in/gXXApKcD

Google had the idea for nine years before they let anyone touch it. Jerry Dischler spent two decades at Google, and he told our MasterClass Executive cohort last week about the product that came out of that nine-year wait: Performance Max, the tool that now handles targeting, bidding, and creative automatically for advertisers. The idea existed long before the product did. What took nine years wasn't the engineering. It was trust. "AI systems are not about storytelling," he said. "AI systems are about quality." Meaning: it doesn't matter how good the pitch sounds if the thing doesn't work most of the time, for most people. Google didn't ship until they were confident the system could deliver on the promise, not just describe it. It's a useful gut check for anyone building something right now, whether that's a product, a pitch, or a plan you're trying to get buy-in for. The story can be compelling. That's not the bar. The bar is: does it hold up when someone actually uses it. Sound like the conversations you want to be having? Apply for MasterClass Executive now. Limited seats available: https://mstr.cl/Exec-C2

Most people think they're good at reading others. Research says they're right about half the time. Former FBI counterintelligence agent Robin Dreeke spent 20 years learning how to beat those odds. Now he's teaching the system in a new class. In this class, you’ll learn to spot hidden agendas, test what people tell you, catch your own blind spots, and know exactly whom to trust—before a bad read costs you a hire, a deal, or a relationship. Our newest class, "Become the Person Everyone Trusts", is now streaming on #MasterClass: https://lnkd.in/g-RphTAY

He spent 20 years catching spies. Now, former FBI counterintelligence agent Robin Dreeke is teaching you how to read people. Our newest class, Become the Person Everyone Trusts, arrives tomorrow on #MasterClass!