By Liz Carmack
The capabilities of AI are continually improving, so you may be worried about the future of your job. Here are some tips for navigating the revolution and AI-proofing your career.
“As artificial intelligence evolves, we must remember that its power lies not in replacing human intelligence, but in augmenting it. The true potential of AI lies in its ability to amplify human creativity and ingenuity.”
Ginni Rometty, Former Chairman and CEO of IBM
The artificial intelligence (AI) revolution is underway. Businesses of all sizes are tapping AI tools to automate processes, aggregate and analyze data, generate content and do much more. Whether you’re in legal services, journalism, healthcare, software development, telemarketing, financial services, graphic design or another field, you might be worrying that your job is in jeopardy.
Don’t fret and freeze; instead, work to AI-proof your career. Learn all you can about these tools, embrace your human strengths and expand your skills.
Embrace and Collaborate with AI
Get to know the AI tools that can be used in your industry – just as you would learn about any other development in your field. Start your research with this list of The Top 16 Best AI Tools in 2023 compiled by Hackr.io.
Experiment with the tools that can enhance your productivity and performance. Perhaps Motion, a scheduling tool, can help manage your to-dos, calendar and projects. Or GitHub Copilot, a tool for programmers, can exponentially boost your code production.
Imagine using AI to automate your mundane tasks or streamline your workflow. You could focus more of your time on high-level work requiring your innate judgment, creativity, knowledge and skills.
“As AI evolves, its adoption might not be as fast as we think. But those who absorb and master it quickly are at more of an advantage,” writes Kim Rittberg in This is How to Stay Relevant at Work in the Age of AI. She quotes Paul Canetti, a professor at Columbia Business School and founder/CEO of Skej, an AI scheduling assistant company, “… long before AI takes your job, someone using AI is going to take it. Try everything and don’t just learn it; teach the rest of the team how to use it too.”
While I didn’t use the natural language processing tool ChatGPT to write this blog, I’d better explore its capabilities before my next writing project, even if it’s only to brainstorm topic ideas.
Make the Most of Your Humanness
While AI can be used to automate work such as proofreading, bookkeeping or market research, it can’t replace your humanity – at least not for the time being.
“Focus on developing human skills that differentiate you from AI, such as creativity, critical thinking and emotional intelligence. These abilities are highly valued in problem-solving, innovation, and complex decision-making processes, making you indispensable in the workforce,” writes Jothi Kumar in Job Security in the Age of AI – Here are 13 Ways You Can Protect Your Job.
Your ability to develop and maintain interpersonal relationships has always been valuable at work. With the arrival of AI, it’s even more crucial.
“The one step that all of us can take to help protect our jobs from AI is to fully embrace what makes us human,” writes Mark C. Perna in The Steps You Can Take Today to Protect Your Job from AI. “While AI may be great at sharing data, it also can’t relate and connect to people like another human being can.”
AI also can’t inspire and motivate team members, but you can. Double down on the human skills you should already use in the workplace. Strive to fully understand yourself, your strengths, your weaknesses and passions and those with whom you work and serve. Aim to collaborate, network and foster meaningful connections with your team, your customers and your supervisor, as only a human can.
Commit to Lifelong Learning
If you’re not already committed to lifelong learning, it’s time to start. In addition to understanding all you can about (and using) AI tools applicable to your job, acquire new, in-demand skills in your field. In addition, sharpen your executive functioning and leadership skills.
“AI’s most significant impact will likely be helping us be more effective in our careers. But if your job is impacted, having taken the time to re-skill leaves you more prepared for future opportunities where you present yourself as a multifaceted candidate,” writes Flori Needle in What Jobs Will AI Replace & Which are Safe in 2023.
As a professional communicator, I’ve regularly re-tooled my skill set in anticipation of industry changes. For example, I taught myself how to hard code HTML in the mid-1990s, before my employer dreamed of having a website. That knowledge provided job security and expanded my autonomy, which allowed me to design my job’s scope as my organization moved online.
Sure, go ahead and doom scroll Will Robots Take My Job and every article listing the jobs AI could replace. But after an hour, close that browser window and get to work. Learn all you can about AI and how you can harness it, embrace your humanity and expand or re-tool your skills. These steps will serve you well during the AI revolution.
Liz Carmack is an award-winning writer, editor and author of two nonfiction books published by Texas A&M University Press. She has worked as a communications professional for almost four decades.
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