Higher education has changed in ways that are difficult to ignore. Students arrive in class having already consulted AI tools on the topic at hand. Lectures now move between physical classrooms and online sessions without much thought. And the criteria by which "good teaching" is judged have expanded well beyond the subject matter they teach. For a long time, subject expertise was enough. That's changing now. These days, the professors who seem most at ease aren't always the ones with the longest publication lists or experience. More often, they're the ones who've stayed curious — picking up a new tool, trying a different teaching approach, building a connection outside their department, keeping a half-eye on what's changing in their field.