The sure sign that I am failing in the AI world
I'm not following my own advice when it comes to leadership and I am failing when it comes to AI.
The other day, I caught myself saying something that is a sure sign I am failing as a business leader.
I was conversing with friends about yet another breathtaking tech advance when I suddenly felt overwhelmed by AI exhaustion. "I don't want to try any more apps," I said. "I just want somebody to do this for me."
As I thought about this statement later, I realized I had put myself on a path of irrelevance.
Here's why ...
Asking the right questions
One of the most powerful pieces of advice I've received came from the legendary Peter Drucker when I was his student at Claremont Graduate University. He said that great leaders don't need to have all the right answers, but they need to ask all the right questions.
Especially today, we can't have all the answers. The world is changing too fast. But to have the right questions, we have to know what is possible. And you can't know what's possible if you're hiding under a blanket, hoping the AI revolution goes away.
By abdicating my responsibility to try new AI apps, I was jeopardizing my effectiveness as a teacher, a consultant, and a person who is trying to show up as a marketing thought leader. I will fail to have "leading thoughts" if I let other people do the work.
I've been speaking around the world about AI and business, and I implore my audiences to spend time experimenting with AI every day. I need to follow my own advice, and I will.
Moving to the new AI groove takes time. And that's painful. But we need to do the work right now. You can't be halfway relevant.
I appreciate you and the time you took out of your day to read this! You can find more articles like this from me on the top-rated {grow} blog and while you’re there, take a look at my Marketing Companion podcast and my keynote speaking page. For news and insights find me on Twitter at @markwschaefer, to see what I do when I’m not working, follow me on Instagram, and discover my RISE community here.
Illustration courtesy MidJourney.
Failing? Hardly. You're providing a clarion call that we must not forsake humans on the altar of technology, no matter how promising the outlook it offers. (And that's debatable as you well know.) As much as I embrace AI- and I do - it's becoming abundantly clear that I share your conviction.