Related Articles
It’s hard to enter a place of business or have any professional conversations these days without artificial intelligence or AI coming up. With the recent release of accessible AI tools like ChatGPT, DALL-E 2, and Google Bard, industries are abuzz with how AI will change the workplace and job roles. While experts are somewhat unclear on just how AI will change the workforce, it is clear that AI can make certain tasks much easier.
So, if every employee or company has access to the wonders of AI, what makes you special?
What AI can’t do, and quite honestly will never be able to do in a real way, is build human connection. If you look at other technological revolutions like the birth of the internet or social media, you’ll find that although people were able to connect more easily, such connections largely did not yield the meaningful social interactions that humans crave. There is a reason why adolescents who spend more than three hours a day on social media face double the risk of mental health problems. People need connections that technology simply cannot fulfill…fully.
AI is bound to make work and communication easier, but where are the meaningful connections that people crave? Here are four ways you can create real human connections in the age of AI.
1. Show More Gratitude
A McKinsey survey of employees who recently left their jobs found that 35% left because their leaders didn’t care about them. As technologies decrease the amount of time and effort you have to spend on work, a wise way to use this time is to build meaningful connections through gratitude.
Find ways to show others that you care about and appreciate them. Gratitude should go beyond a meager “thank you” at the end of an email or a quick “good job” while passing in the hallway. These small gestures are good too, but real gratitude comes from going out of your way to make a gesture. Call up a co-worker to express how appreciative you are of their work. Send a gift to a loyal client. Take your team out for lunch after a grueling week. Those who express gratitude can build better connections, report higher well-being, and increase motivation in others.
How to do this:
Do something meaningful to or for them; every person has their own love language. While writing a hand-written note may mean the world to one person, it may be meaningless to another. Finding out what others enjoy and appreciate takes careful consideration and maybe a bit of research.
2. Create Space for Gathering
Humans are genetically programmed to be social and desire connection with others. This has served our species well throughout history as our ancestors’ survival rate increased significantly when they were part of a tribe or village. Today, you may not need a tribe of fellow warriors to help defend you from a pack of wolves or a village to share resources with (Amazon Prime can fill that need). However, your survival rate is still higher when you’re connected to others. Research has found that people who are more socially connected have better health and live longer. In fact, being consistently lonely is actually equated to smoking 15 cigarettes a day.
The Rolling Stone Culture Council is an invitation-only community for Influencers, Innovators and Creatives. Do I qualify?
Creating space to gather with others can look a lot of different ways, like joining a weekly yoga class or hosting a monthly dinner with your siblings. These gatherings don’t have to be large or elaborate even. Simply creating moments for yourself to be social and connect face to face with others is enough, like walking to the kitchen to socialize with co-workers for 15 minutes or striking up a conversation with a stranger on the train ride home.
How to do this:
Host a gathering that allows others to see who you are, like cooking dinner for friends with dishes from your heritage or inviting co-workers to your band’s performance over the weekend.
3. Tell a Story
Writers and journalists have been called out as an occupation that could be replaced by AI. Sure, ChatGPT can write an article, but what it can’t do is convey and draw out human emotion. The most compelling articles or shocking interviews are the ones that showcase the human emotion expressed and the interpretation of the journalist involved. One of the greatest powers you or your company hold over AI is the ability to tell your unique experience. Tell your vulnerable story in a way that moves others and listen to others’ stories as well.
How to do this:
Own your narrative:Your perspective is what makes you unique. Find ways to share it in appropriate yet impactful formats, filled with emotional connection.
4. Get Curious
Curiosity has been associated with better memory, intelligence and engagement, but it’s also connected to better social relationships. This is because people who are curious tend to ask more questions and seek out new perspectives and stories from others. This trait not only appeases a person’s curiosity but also makes others perceive them as more enjoyable and attractive.
Finding unknown information, generating unique insight or having an original idea comes from connecting experiences with knowledge. AI has a lot of knowledge but it has absolutely no real-world experience or connection to others.
How to do this:
• Ask open-ended questions: Open-ended questions require answers other than “yes,” “no,” or single words. Things like “What are your thoughts on the new workflow?” or “What brought you to think that?”
• Seek new environments: Just a change of scenery can do wonders for changing your perspective and creating new ideas. Find ways to get out in nature regularly to rejuvenate the mind and make room for new thoughts.
AI is a powerful tool that will surely impact human lives for generations to come. As AI takes over certain tasks, making space in your professional and personal life, prioritizing engagement, gratitude, connection, uniqueness and curiosity can set you apart from everyone else using the powers of AI and enhance your life.
