Boy, it’s easy. The ability to command: “Write me a paragraph to motivate my team to meet our production deadline.” Presto, it’s done in a manner of seconds. AND while it’s a marvel, I worry that this tool prevents us, and particularly young people, from nurturing, developing, and mastering the art of writing.
I recall one of my first important organizational roles was to lead internal communication. The role was a bit intimidating initially but I remember thinking to myself that by the end of my tenure with the company I would become a much, much better writer – because I had daily practice. I spent every day, all day, crafting messages from the CEO to employees, promoting different internal initiatives, rallying teams to adhere to strategy, etc. It was challenging and I learned a lot about how to get my point across and engage my readers.
I often wonder how different my own development would have been in the age of AI. With the Olympics going on I am thinking it would be like having a aspiration to be a gold medal pole vaulter without putting in the practice.We can’t stop technological advances but we can adapt our approach to how we use them so that we can develop our own unique voice while leveraging some of the efficiencies that come from AI.
A few tips:
- Write your own draft first, then ask for AI help
- Jumpstart your writing process with help from AI
- Follow with integrating your own voice, humor, perspective (you may end up with only a single sentence generated from AI)
- Check grammar, structure, word choice with AI
- Fold in your own stories and example
For me, when I feel stuck – the proverbial writer’s block – AI assistance can help me put something on the page and sometimes that is just what you need to allow your creativity and unique point of view to shine through.
For more: https://www.prsa.org/article/surviving-in-the-age-of-ai-writing
