AI can be scary, but it doesn't have to be. Here's how to navigate this new world
By far and away, the No. 1 concern about artificial intelligence is: Will it replace me? Will it take my job? Will it render me obsolete?
The answer is blunt: only if you let it. No transformation in history has ever become as imminent as fast as AI — not the PC, not the Industrial Revolution, not television, not the internet, not … well, anything. No wonder it’s so ominous.
AI has gotten off to a fast, wild-and-wooly start, and it hasn’t given most of us enough time to understand it, thereby causing what amounts to a global case of heartburn and insomnia. But it doesn’t have to. If we slow down a bit and start asking good questions, this whole thing will look different.
And for my money, the many questions we can ask boil down to two: (1) What, exactly, is AI? (2) Do we let it become our master or our aide?
And then comes the immediate question of the hour: If AI will change the whole world and the life of every single person in it, what skills will we need to use AI effectively? Meaning creatively, productively, resourcefully and advantageously.
Knowing that no one has all the answers, I gathered a few of my respected peers and we tossed it around, knowing that we each probably had a few ideas, but only as a whole, did we have, for the time being, “our” answer. (For the fun of it, I also asked AI. Not surprisingly, AI agreed with us for the most part, but missed a couple of slam-dunks. We’ll get to that later.)
More: Artificial intelligence should be taught to young students: Vantage Point
Of note, we’re concerned here with the skills that AI users will need, not those that AI builders (techies) will need. That’s another kettle of fish altogether.
Digital literacy. This is foundational: basic computer skills, navigating the internet, comfort using new software for AI as it develops.
Data literacy. Understanding how data is used by AI systems and how we use (and misuse) data. This includes data collection techniques, data privacy and the potential for data bias.
Linguistic literacy. Talk about foundational! This means how language works and how its components — vocabulary, grammar, syntax, semantics and phonetics — work together. The better you are at this, the better AI will be.
Critical thinking. The ability to assess the information and knowledge presented by AI. Remember, AI’s outputs are based on patterns of data, and how that data is gathered by and presented to you can vary wildly. Which brings up …
Common sense. While you’re being awed by how much data AI can get its hands on in a nanosecond and present to you the way you want it, keep in mind that — according to industry experts — as much as 70% of its output could be wrong, suspicious or irrelevant.
Voice-text interaction. Effective use of voice assistants was science fiction 50 years ago. Today? Ask Alexa how important it is.
Personalization. AI doesn’t have to be an off-the-rack suit; it can be a custom-made garment. Learn the settings.
AI-enhanced creativity. Creativity and its offspring, innovation, are the result of a simulation of creative dissatisfaction with the status quo. We are all born with a sense of creativeness — that’s how babies explore their new world — but we lose it over time by seeking comfort in the status quo. Be in touch with your creativeness and ask AI for help.
Ethics. AI has the capacity to do more good or more harm than any other invention in history. Go back and take that ethics course you should have taken in school.
Collaboration. Like most other endeavors, teams go further than individuals. Sharpen your team-building skills.
The AI here-now. Stay up to date on AI’s comings and goings. The nature, pace and scope of change in AI will certainly make our heads spin, but we have no choice. AI is rapidly transforming from a strategic advantage to an operational advantage.
This list will surely change in both detail and scope. In fact, it probably has changed during the time you took to read this column.
Now, as for the two that AI didn’t get, let’s play around. Email me with your guesses, and I’ll let you know.
Eli Amdur has been providing individualized career and executive coaching, as well as corporate leadership advice, since 1997. For 15 years he taught graduate leadership courses at FDU. He has been a regular writer for this and other publications since 2003. You can reach him at eli.amdur@amdurcoaching.com or 201-357-5844.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: AI is changing everything. Here's how to be successful
