Spell It: Here's how to future-proof your job against artificial intelligence

Ever since artificial intelligence (AI) – ChatGPT and its successor GPT-4 in particular – captured the limelight, there have been growing conversations about the future of business, work and learning. The stakes are high, especially for individuals like you and me.

Click start to play today’s Spell It, where we realise debating about whether AI is smarter or better than humans is a ‘moot’ point.

The tools are here, and they’re already being widely used. It’s time to learn to improve our own skills by using AI to our advantage, and to future-proof ourselves in the age of intelligent technology.

Here are a few strategies to do so, according to an April 2023 report by US-based business news website Harvard Business Review (HBR):

1. Don’t be predictable

When you’re feeling overwhelmed by the speed and productivity of AI, it’s worth reminding yourself that the technology isn’t really generating new insights – it acts more like a prediction machine that guesses the most likely next word. Its advice is only as good as the resources it dives into (which is the wisdom of the crowd – something that’s often not reliable or effective). Still, AI can be a powerful tool when used right. GPT-4, for instance, has been excellent at coming up with ideas and initial drafts, but use it as a starting point, and not the whole production. When everyone else is turning to AI and churning out templated scripts, embrace your own personality and unpredictability and go the other direction – bring your humanness to your cover letters, reports and presentations. It’ll make you stand out.

2. Hone the same skills that everyone wants AI to emulate

While AI tech, like GPT-4, has been trained to be respectful, often displaying empathy, self-awareness and creativity, it’s not able to experience or truly display soft skills. Its responses are based on text prediction. Since humans are intrinsically able to respond to genuine emotions, pick up nuances, and react to emotional cues, embracing these soft skills are an essential strategy to set yourself apart from AI.

3. Immerse yourself in the real world

AI’s domain is the digital world, and although many human activities happen in this realm too, we have to realise AI cannot disrupt our in-person, analogue connection with others. So, it’s incredibly important to preserve and nurture those relationships – whether it’s having meals with colleagues or initiating conversations with strangers, and broadening our horizons and experiences. Similarly, original research, which involved talking to people and identifying new insights, is vital – it’s something AI cannot do, since it can only work with information it’s supplied with.

Are you concerned about AI’s influence? Play today’s Spell It and tell us at games@gulfnews.com.