Bad brands and bros being called out for their action is accountability, not cancellation. The term “cancel culture” is a crafty invention by crisis PR teams aimed at undermining legitimate calls for social reform. Also, the idea that anyone gets given a one-way ticket to a permanent cancel is a total joke; very few of these bums truly get chased off the internet.
That being said –
Corporations, naturally, dread the thought of a cultural backlash. Recall Pepsi’s infamous wreck of the Kendall Jenner ad? It is a prime example of an advertising derailment. Traditionally, brands have employed PR firms armed with psychological and sociological tools to forecast and avoid such disastrous public reactions to their campaigns. Before now, that PR machine was cranked by hand. Now, we have AI.
Radical Customer Experience (RCX) is an example of one of these new AI PR firms. RCX swoops in like an AI hero, rescuing companies from potential PR train wrecks before they happen.
RCX touts that its AI-powered tool, called Radical Human Intelligence or RadicalHI, can predict where a brand’s message might derail, generating a “sensitivity score” to help them avoid fiery crashes of public discontent. (Curious minds can examine their patent-pending methods on their website, which essentially updates traditional methods like focus groups with a sleek, AI-driven analysis.)
This of course is a good idea. Avoiding PR train wrecks is generally a good thing. And RadicalHI seems a few steps ahead of the AI-in-PR game. But, I have a question for RadicalHI and any other firm moving toward AI analysis:
What about LLMs tendency to Pollyanna everything? What do I mean by “pollyanna?” It’s evident that LLMs, although they claim to be trained (legally or not) on novels, or poetry, or the most experimental fiction of our time, the product LLM offers tends to only sound like long-form corporate content.
Let’s ask Chat-GPT4 to edit some examples written by humans to demonstrate what I mean.
Prompt:
Please rewrite this sentence “18-year NBA veteran Lowry got yeeted by Hartenstein well into next week during the slow-as-a-snail 3rd quarter of the game, after Embiid limped to the locker room minutes earlier.”
Result:
“During the sluggish third quarter of the game, 18-year NBA veteran Lowry was dramatically sent flying by Hartenstein, not long after Embiid had limped off to the locker room.”
Prompt:
please rewrite this sentence: “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.”
Result:
“It is widely recognized that a single man with substantial wealth must be seeking a wife.”
Chat-GPT4 by OpenAi
Let’s do another type of test. Right now, construct a sentence with these 3 words from Random Word Generator.com:
PILE
EAVESDROP
GRANDFATHER
Ok, got your sentence?
Let’s see what ChatGPT writes.
Prompt:
please write a sentence containing these three words: pile eavesdrop grandfather
Result:
Curious about the tales being told, I decided to eavesdrop on my grandfather as he sat by the pile of old family albums, recounting stories from his youth.
Did your sentence contained the concept of eavesdropping on the grandfather? I pictured a pile of leaves, but I definitely used the same concept of eavesdropping on the grandfather, as opposed to the grandfather being the one easedropping. It’s the most common scenario our brains would come up with. And that’s how LLMs work, too. They predict the most common outputs.
In another example, let’s ask Chat-GPT to write a tweet like this one from the Steak-Umm account:
“why are so many young people flocking to brands on social media for love, guidance, and attention? I’ll tell you why. they’re isolated from real communities, working service jobs they hate while barely making ends meat, and are living w/ unchecked personal/mental health problems”
why are so many young people flocking to brands on social media for love, guidance, and attention? I'll tell you why. they're isolated from real communities, working service jobs they hate while barely making ends meat, and are living w/ unchecked personal/mental health problems
please write a tweet about why so many young people flock to brands on social media for love, guidance and attention
Result:
“Why do so many young people gravitate towards brands on social media for love, guidance, and attention? In a world where real connections can feel sparse, brands offer a sense of community and understanding that resonates with the youth navigating life’s challenges. #SocialMediaTrends #YouthCulture”
We’ve lost the sincerity and the sense of a real human voice. (We’re also missing the quirky fun of Steak-Umms tendency to put in “meat” for any of that word’s homophones, but LLM fans say with a proper prompt we may be able to coax similar quirkiness.)
LLMs love to hover around this common output. It’s as if the LLM train stops only in Pleasantville, a mythical place of overly sanitized, idyllic commercial content. Any content writer on the interwebz can spot the watered-down corporate-speak. Do we want the ads that drive the web to steer clear of the gritty realities of the human experience? What kind of social engineering are we willing to let pass? My concern is it may sculpt us all into the ideal Live, Love, Laugh consumers corporations crave.
Consider the aftermath of Pepsi’s misstep. It likely made many reconsider their brand loyalty—a healthy outcome for consumer consciousness. RadicalHI is a dream tool for brands wanting to avoid such blunders, and indeed there is a real need for it. We would rather have woke brands than, well, what we currently have.
But looking ahead I can’t help but wonder if PR companies’ reliance on algorithms might in the end derail brands, keeping them from real human interaction with consumers. Indeed it is possible to take a stand and still keep your customers. The SteakUmmms account is a brilliant example of how brands can still show their quirky human side without losing connection with their fans. That account is far more engaging than any algorithmically generated, Norman Rockwell-esque automated mouthpiece could ever be.
We’re all aboard this AI train, whether or not we bought tickets. But – we don’t have to ride silently along. We can expect brands to be creatively bold *and* considerate. We can expect them to respect our vibrant, chaotic human lives. Viva la mess.
Picture this: You’re curled up, bingeing the latest Netflix series. Your phone rings. You let it go to voicemail (because who answers). In between episodes, you check the voicemail. It is from you.
“Hi, It’s me, your inner voice,” it says. “Taxes are due. You’re running out of time. Fortunately, TurboTax can help. Stop delaying and go to turbotax.com for a discount right now. Listen to your inner voice – turbotax today, total relaxation tomorrow!”
Say hello to AI. Your own voice just shamed you and sold you a service.
Think this is the future? Nope. This could happen tonight. OpenAI, the force behind Large Language Model Chat-GPT, can now mimic and replicate your voice with your own unique intonation and pronunciation behaviors. OpenAI’s voice cloning program, called Voice Engine, needs only 15 seconds of audio of your natural speech to robo-parrot a fully-formed voice clone that can read any text it is given. The strangest part: it *sounds* exactly like you. Not even your closest friends and family would be able tell the difference between your voice and the machine’s clone.
At Least OpenAI is Open about it
OpenAI isn’t the first software company to clone voices, but Voice Engine needs only 15 seconds of speech, and the advanced mimicry is beyond impressive. They laid it all out pretty plainly in a recent blog post (see below for links).
OpenAI’s teams are the same folks who brought us Chat-GPT, a chatbot that can write Shakespearean sonnets about spaghetti. OpenAI has now turned its sights on perfecting voice replication. This technology may revolutionize everything from personal assistants to prank calling.
A Sonnet to Spaghetti, by Chat-GPT4
Upon a plate, twixt fork and spoon entwined,
A golden tress of Italy's fair hair.
In sauce, rich red, where tomatoes combined
With herbs, a scent that dances in the air.
This humble meal, from simple flour's grace,
Transformed by craft, by boiling water's cheer,
Each strand, a line in love's eternal chase,
A symphony to satisfy the ear.
O Spaghetti, in thy length, a story told
Of families gathered, of laughter shared,
Of hands both young and old, in warmth, enfold,
In every bite, a memory is spared.
For in this dish, no grandeur doth it claim,
Yet hearts, through simple pleasure, it doth tame.
But while Voice Engine promises to make voice-overs and personalized messages more accessible, it also opens a can of ethical worms. Imagine receiving a heartfelt apology from a friend, only to discover it was AI-generated. That would make the next happy hour pretty awkward, huh? Sadly, a bit of cringe between friends is the least of our worries.
Fake kidnapping schemes and wire fraud scams have already begun. When that AI-generated apology is followed up by a phone call from that same friend, now stranded and desperately asking for $1000, odds are you’ll be in the mood to help him out.
More than one parent have already fallen victim to fake-kidnapping calls. See how this gets potentially devastating. We’ll need several blog posts to talk about the legal, ethical and moral considerations of voice clones. For now, just know it’s already way too messy.
Strategize against the machine
Now that this technology exists, what’s a regular old Netflix fan supposed to do? For starters, don’t trust voice alone. If anyone calls you in distress asking for money, hang up and call them back. CallerID can be spoofed, so even if the call seems legit, make a hangup/callback move the standard emergency protocol. Once you re-establish contact, perhaps it can be all cleared up. If you are still in doubt, pull out a secret codeword you’ve previously established.
(When I told my two BFFs from college this latest development, we established a code word right away. Yay, 12-year-old-boy humor).
If you don’t have a codeword, another verification idea comes from the world of science-fiction: shared memory verification. Whenever the aliens body snatch, we humans resort to asking who threw up in second grade or what people food our first cat craved. If the person can’t answer, then they’ve been body snatched. Kill them immediately. Or, in this case, just hang up.
Some Cool Bots
For creators, this technology is a game-changer. Podcasters can produce content in multiple languages without ever learning them, and authors can narrate their audiobooks without stepping into a recording booth.
The ability to preserve the voices of actors or artists could bring comfort to many. In my opinion, there cannot be too much Mr. Rogers content. The world lost a kind soul when he died. But now I could hear his voice reading children’s stories or perhaps reading one of his own written articles.
Most importantly, people with communication challenges will have a whole new world opened to them. Many people with speech impairments have long-relied on synthetic voices, but the voices are usually tinny and lack personality. Now the sufferer’s own voice can be constructed or reconstructed from a few vowel sounds.
OK, Corral your thoughts
It’s worth repeating here that legal, ethical and moral issues surround these good possibilities. Right now, AI is *quite* messy. It’s Wild West; basically zero legislation exists to protect any of us. But let’s not throw the AI baby out with the electronics recycling bathwater just yet.
Indeed, we must say bye-bye to the days of blindly trusting our ears – and eyes (e.g., deep fakes). But the good news is – now you know. Keep your eyes and ears open to new possibilities of how AI can help you. Hey, maybe once your Netflix series is kicked, you can get you to read you a bedtime story.
The dark truth of how multi-level pyramid schemes exploit our brains, hook our attention and trap us like rats in a cage.
Let’s start with 2 stories, one about a smart little lab rat and another about a smart, determined woman.
Myrtle’s Puzzle
In the cozy corner of a warmly-lit psychology lab lived a pretty white rat named Myrtle. Known for her playful nature, Myrtle had a fondness for cuddles and tickles, nestling daily in the hands of her human researcher. Her days were filled with simple joys – grooming her glossy fur, playfully chasing her fellow rats, and solving the puzzles that her caretakers lovingly prepared.
Myrtle loved the puzzles. Each new one was an adventure. Solving them was her favorite part!
One day, a new puzzle appeared in her cage. It was a simple contraption: a button and a tiny dish. Myrtle quickly learned that pressing the button 5 times rewarded her with a delightful treat. She relished the game, solving it a few times for the sheer joy of mastery and the sweet reward that followed. But true to her nature, once sated, Myrtle would scamper off to her other activities – grooming, playing, living the good life of a loved lab rat.
The next day, the routine 5 presses yielded nothing. Confused, Myrtle tried again, adding an extra press. Then another. At the eighth press, the treat tumbled out. “Aha,” she thought, “the game has changed.” With the adaptability that had always been her strength, Myrtle prepared to master this new challenge.
But the button became unpredictable. A treat might drop on the second press, or the tenth, or not at all. The unpredictability was maddening, but it only fueled Myrtle’s curiosity and determination. She forgot the world outside the button – her friends, her grooming, the warm hands that once cuddled her.
Days blurred into each other as Myrtle pressed on. Her once glossy fur lost its sheen, her eyes glazed over with fixation. The randomness of the button had ensnared her. The rest of her life was fading like a forgotten dream.
Victoria’s Mirage: The Lure of Elusive Success
In a small military town, Victoria was settling herself and her two-and-a-half year old baby into their assigned family housing on base. Her world, recently shattered by a miscarriage and her mother’s death, felt further fragmented by her husband’s deployment. He was her steady rock, but now he could only offer words of comfort over crackling phone lines and laggy video chats.
An invitation from Amanda, a fellow military spouse, seemed like a respite from Victoria’s loneliness. Eager for human connection, Victoria wrapped up her toddler and walked the few steps to Amanda’s home. They were greeted warmly by the spouses and their small children. Victoria was surprised that as Amanda introduced her to the group, Amanda shared Victoria’s recent sorrows. But her shock was quickly washed in comfort, as the women nodded and shared their own stories of pain and loss.
Promises of healing and community surrounded Victoria like a curtain sweeps a stage. The products, the women claimed, were miraculous, and the opportunity to sell them was a path to financial freedom and personal fulfillment. Victoria could not help but be drawn in by the warmth and air of success of the women around her.
The next month was a whirlwind of excitement. Victoria felt a sense of belonging and sense of purpose she had longed for. These products truly helped people, she believed. Amanda’s praises as Victoria made her first sales felt like rays of sunshine piercing through a dark cloud of grief. And it felt so, so good to help people who were, like her, struggling to feel better. This new path lit a fire of hope in her heart. It felt like a new beginning, a way to rebuild her life and forge a new identity as a successful entrepreneur.
But as the second and third months came, the plan faltered. Her new home, once a haven, turned into a storage facility for products. Each encouragement from Amanda and from the extended team were tinged with subtle guilt. Victoria had a purpose, they reminded her. This wasn’t about selling, it was about transforming people’s lives. Amanda was pressuring her to invest more, to do more, to believe more. She maxed out the two meager credit cards she shared with her husband. Victoria felt sure she would hit the streak. It was guaranteed. So many stories from others in company told her so. Success was right around the corner. It was only a matter of time.
Stuck in a rat race?
What does Myrtle have in common with Victoria?
They both sound like lovely creatures. They are loved by their families. They are both full of potential and probably quite attractive. You probably don’t know this, but lab rats are pretty cute. They’re smart, they’re social, they like to be tickled. They do amazing things like crawl on top of a maze structure when they weren’t supposed to know they were *in* a maze. They can band together to rescue a pack member. They even think up their own individual dances! Rats truly are adorable, resourceful, clever little buggers.And who isn’t more resourceful than military spouses? They are truly a different breed of resilient humans. They are deserving of all the respect and support they don’t usually get.
Psychology researchers have an easier time studying rats than humans. Rats’ cleverness and their similarities to us is what makes them popular amongst psychology researchers. Rat brains and human brains are constructed and function in much the same way. Psych researchers can design experiments that address human questions. They design puzzles in a way to “hack” the inherent nature of rats brains – the same nature in our own human brains – in the hope of unlocking the mysteries of how dopamine works. They use the rats own nature against them, all in the name of science.
As we saw in Myrtle’s story, a treat button puzzle is popular type of challenge given to rats. Myrtle’s behavior was typical: when the button has a predictable pattern, Myrtle will solve the puzzle then go about her day. When it has an unpredictable pattern, Myrtle will lose all sense and become obsessed with the button. She won’t stop until she collapses with exhaustion. We can all relate to this, of course. How much time have you spent watching your phone for anticipated text messages?
How to save Myrtle
Sadly, as pack-oriented and social as they are, fellow rats would not be able to recognize that Myrtle was dying at the Reno Rat Casino. They won’t know to pull her away from the button. The psych grad students must show mercy.
Here are the only ways to save Myrtle from being trapped by these intermittent rewards:
Break the button. Don’t let the button deliver any more treats.
Physically remove the button or the Myrtle.
Put the button back on a predictable hit interval and keep it set there.
The end of Myrtle’s story is a happy one. The button puzzle is removed. She rests for a while, and soon gets back to daily life. She grooms her fur, she plays with friends, she cuddles with her human. Her love of puzzles is no longer hacked by researchers. After a few months, she and her best friend are adopted by her human. She is taken to a loving, cozy home to live a peaceful, predictable life.
How to hack a human
Victoria’s story can end well, too, but before we work to break her out, we need to first understand what is happening in her and Myrtle’s brains.
Victoria’s journey into being recruited for the ML scam will probably ring true for many former victims. An extremely vulnerable moment gets turned into an opportunity for the scam to exploit our human nature. But why does this work? What, exactly, is happening to our brains at those moments?
Enter dopamine. Everyone’s favorite neurotransmitter.
In the days before cell phones, we old heads had to pass notes in class. If a note was too private to risk being read by others along the delivery route, we’d craft paper airplanes and toss them quick-like when the teacher’s back was turned.
Imagine a brain like a classroom. Dopamine is the paper airplane sent between cells. Dopamine carries a specific message from one cell to the other and also triggers some sensations that make us feel good. That “feel good” rush is what everyone likes to talk about but it is only one feature of dopamine’s programming. Dopamine is actually an essential learning tool; It is a Very, Very Good and Necessary Thing to have in your brain because it helps us absorb information and integrate it into our knowledge.
But the dopamine process can, because of its very nature, be exploited. Dopamine is why Myrtle will be pushing up daisies before she stops pushing that button, and why Victoria will face bankruptcy before she gives up pursuing success that is “just around the corner.”
Dopamine is about learning
Dopamine is everyone’s favorite paper airplane to get, because according to brain cells, this particular paper airplane always contains good news. It consists of only one message: “Hey BFF Brain Cell, pay attention because we’re about to learn/do something new and cool!”
Our brains want most of our attention on important things like lions laying in wait or pretty girls or getting food. So whenever the brain recognizes a new pattern, it gets excited and works quickly to build pathways to automate that task. These pathways kind of look like roads. They are express lanes for brain signals.
As you can imagine, dopamine is given top priority, because our brain cell besties wanna build the most efficient express lanes possible. YAY DOPAMINE!
How the hack works
If we were to give an evil hacker a computer connected to a human brain, the hacker would immediately introduce an intermittent reward process.
Remember our little brain cell BFFs? What are they to do, though, if they get a paper airplane but they encounter no pattern? Would they just shrug their shoulders and write off that particular message as a fake? Or would they keep watching?
The hacker knows how to keep them watching. If the hacker would stop sending paper airplanes, the pair of brain cells will give up. But the hacker tosses one over occasionally in no particular order, these dedicated little BFF buggers will keep at it. They will keep searching for a pattern. They want to build some pathways, gosh darn it!
And boom. The hacker is complete. All the hacker has to do is throw them a random paper airplane once in a while.
What this looks like IRL for ML scams
We know already what being trapped looks like for poor Myrtle, her muscles shrinking as she sits and hits the button, hoping for more treats. It is much the same for Victoria and the rest of us. Imagine the person who can’t keep scrolling (thanks, Facebook!), or the gambler who can’t seem to tear themselves away from the slot machine.
(side note: You know what’s ironic? A lot of these ML scams will admonish 9-5 workers as being “trapped in a rat race.” But the ML scam treats humans more like rats than any 9-5 job would. ML scamming is a constant rat race for the next recruit, the next level, a speaking gig at the next indoctrination event.)
Dopamine hits for ML scammers come on irregular schedules. Luring a new victim, making a sale, getting good feedback from one’s upline or from a customer, attending a “training,” etc., each one of these things sends a dopamine hit. Our brains desperately search for patterns so we can put any good thing on autopilot.
When the ML scheme delivers these rewards in waves, then in drops, then in waves again, victims get stuck. Only when the delivery of rewards stops or slows down to a too-long interval, victims can break free (or, more likely, they’ll jump to another scheme).
This brain hack is so evil, we usually need a total reboot (aka special outside help) to escape the loop.
I’ve never been victimized as a recruiter for any ML scheme, but I have been taken advantage of as a “customer” (aka mark) once or twice. I don’t have direct experience with an ML scam using these tactics on me but I have most definitely been trapped in intermittent rewards systems, the main one being raised by abusive parents. That is one of the worst, most-difficult-to-break systems, for sure. So I get it. The hack is always the same, though, and we can learn to look for the signs.
Here are some obvious tactics that almost all high-control groups share:
Love-Bombing. An overwhelming sense of belonging given immediately
Promises of safety (i.e. promises of sustainable income and friendship)
Intermittent rewards for continued participation – big rewards at first, then unpredictable rewards in the months/years following
Admonishment for insufficient participation followed by big kudos for any successes
Mass indoctrination events and social esteem delivered for attending, public admonishment for not attending
This isn’t a comprehensive list; It’s just a few examples of how pyramid-schemes-with-products work to keep that dopamine hitting in the brain.
How to attack the ML scam on a systemic level
Remove the button. We must keep on our lawmakers to recognize the danger multi-level schemes pose to consumers. Other countries ban these practices. We can, too.
Deconstruct the ML scam design. Identify the intermittent rewards. Categorize and label every tactic and behavior.
Keep talking and spreading knowledge about this particularly insidious intermittent rewards trap.
Hope for victims
There is hope for Victoria. Her story ends well. One day, something in her mind just clicks. She can’t pinpoint exactly what happened. Maybe it was her heart sinking when Amanda suggested she sell the family heirloom crib, a precious hand-constructed bed kept and loved for generations, so Victoria could attend yet another convention for the company. Maybe it was the pang of shame she felt when her long-time friend from another state came to visit and was taken aback by the products filling Victoria’s house. This friend was disappointed with how much time Victoria spent working and not with her during her too-short visit. Perhaps it was all the little things adding up. She doesn’t know how it happened but now Victoria feels trapped. Something that once contained so much promise now feels like a crumbling house of cards. Insincere friendships turned into a pile of ash. She hopes she can save her family from ruin if she gets out now.
Outside perspectives like the one given by Victoria’s friend is another way to hack back. People can and do escape from intermittent rewards traps all the time. It takes some help and self-awareness and, to be frank, a bit of bravery, but people do it all the time. More and more people are speaking up and speaking out.
Some tactics to think about
Like dopamine and the brain, ML scams are very complex. They can be hard to see through. But like all scams, they are dopamine hacks. But unlike a mere Facebook feed or one-arm bandit, multi-level selling scams are more insidious; The religious, cultural, and emotional hacks are so well-designed they are almost beyond detection.
Cult experts have more to offer than I do when it comes down to the nitty gritty of liberating person like Victoria from a high-control scam. My purpose was to let you in on some info to help illustrate why breaking an intermittent reward system can be so difficult. But as I said, there’s hope. They can hack us, but we can hack back.
Some *meager* suggestions to help you hack back:
Compare reward systems. Starting out with the income disclosure statements, then moving to the victim’s personal expenditure in money and time may help shift the focus from the manipulative reward system to a healthier one.
Don’t deny that sometimes, rewards come. Yes. Sometimes rewards come. But victims will wither away, destroying relationships, finances, and their own spirits as they wait for those ever-decreasing rewards. Are the rewards likely? Are they worth the wait knowing how much else will be forfeit?
Identify *ALL* the rewards. As mentioned above, it is important to deconstruct the ML scam in order to identify which rewards are being delivered on an intermittent schedule. Address each one by pointing out a counterpart that is genuine and consistent. e.g. a non-commercial group, building sincere friendships, etc.
Deny, fight, rebel against the stigma of getting scammed. We are humans, we cannot help but get duped sometimes. One reason scams like this exist is because people feel shame, as if they should’ve been smarter to avoid the scam. But we all get hacked at some point. Smash that shame. It’s a good thing to have dopamine in your brain. Trust me you don’t want to be that person who doesn’t have enough.
Anyone can get trapped by an intermittent reward system. When dopamine does its job, we can end up getting swindled by a lousy lothario from Loserville! Try to be aware of your own vulnerabilities and talk about them. Knowing how dopamine works can help you identify when you are falling into the intermittent rewards trap.
[PurpleCar Christine here. I prompted ChatGPT+ to write a blog post about AI taking our jobs. I won’t include all the syntax of the prompt, but I did include a request for humor. The article is, again, meh. BUT. But. After a heated discussion at our dinner table last night over whether or not people who use AI image generation are “artists” – We said they are not in the traditional sense but we don’t have a term yet for them – the LLM came up with its own term: Digital Artistic Collaborator. Perfect! A DAC. Someone can say, “I’m a DAC artist, using Midjourney and Dall-E mostly” on their LinkedIn profile. Read on to see ChatGPT humor and its mostly -humorous suggestions for new jobs. Photo Credit: Me and Dall-E. This post contains a sponsored link.]
The Great AI Job Heist: When Machines Get Witty and We Get Worried, by ChatGPT Plus
Ah, the age-old fear of machines taking over our jobs. First, it was the typewriter, then the computer, and now? The Large Language Model. I can almost hear Nora Ephron quipping, “I’ll have what the AI’s having,” while Erma Bombeck laments, “If the AI starts doing laundry, I’m officially obsolete.”
But let’s face it, folks. The intersection of technology and psychology is a fascinating one. We’re not just talking about your Roomba developing a crush on your cat or Siri getting sassy when you ask her if she’s dating Alexa. No, we’re diving deep into the comical fears of humans thinking they’ll be replaced by a machine that can’t even taste a good cheesecake.
Fear #1: “The AI will write better jokes than me!”
Well, dear reader, if your jokes are anything like, “Why did the AI go to school? To improve its algorithms!” then yes, you might be in trouble. But remember, humor is subjective. Some people laugh at dad jokes, while others (like me) prefer the wit of Nora and Erma. So, unless the AI starts attending comedy clubs or binge-watching sitcoms, I think your job as the family comedian is safe.
Fear #2: “The AI will become a better therapist than me!”
Imagine lying on a couch, pouring your heart out, and the AI responds with, “Have you tried turning your emotions off and on again?” While technology can provide insights based on data, it lacks the human touch, empathy, and the ability to nod knowingly when you talk about your mother-in-law.
Fear #3: “The AI will steal my job as a writer!”
Well, if the AI starts penning romantic comedies set in New York or writing humorous columns about the perils of suburban life, then maybe. But until then, your unique voice, experiences, and the way you describe your Aunt Mildred’s peculiar hat collection is irreplaceable.
Now, while we’ve had our fun poking at these fears, it’s essential to recognize that AI does bring about change. But with change comes opportunity. So, let’s shift gears and explore some potential new jobs that AI might introduce:
Algorithm Editor: Just as writers need editors, algorithms will need fine-tuning. This job involves ensuring that the AI doesn’t suggest ice cream as a solution to heartbreak. (Although, come to think of it, that’s not a bad idea.)
AI Etiquette Trainer: Someone needs to teach these machines some manners! If your AI assistant starts getting too cheeky, it might be time for a lesson in politeness.
Robot Psychologist: If your Roomba starts acting up, maybe it’s going through an existential crisis. Enter the robot psychologist, ready to delve into the deep-seated issues of your household appliances.
Digital Artist Collaborator: Imagine pairing up with an AI to create art. You bring the vision; the AI brings the precision. Together, you create masterpieces.
AI Humor Tester: Before an AI tries its hand at comedy, it’ll need a human touch to ensure its jokes land. If you’ve got a good sense of humor, this job’s for you!
In conclusion, while the world of AI might seem daunting, it’s filled with potential, laughter, and yes, a touch of absurdity. So, the next time you worry about a machine taking your job, remember: it’s all about perspective. And as Erma Bombeck once said, “There is a thin line that separates laughter and pain, comedy and tragedy, humor and hurt.” Let’s choose to laugh, embrace the change, and maybe, just maybe, teach our AI to appreciate a good cheesecake.
Is CHAT-GPT ready to take over blogging duties for me?
What follows is a copied and pasted result from Chat-GPT. When I prompted the bot, I fed it 3 of my most recent blog posts (with over 500 words each). I instructed it to analyze the posts then generate a blog entry, in the first person using my voice. The post was to have less than 1000 words and it was to address the long break I’ve had from blogging. What do you think? Am I soon to be out of a job?
Here in quotes is what chat.openai.com came up with. I have not changed one word. It is 100% totally unedited:
“Title: Embracing the Long Break: Returning to Blogging with a Fresh Perspective
Hey there, lovely readers! It’s been quite a journey, one that has led me to rediscover my passion for writing. After taking a considerable hiatus from blogging, I’ve come to realize the value of stepping back and reevaluating my approach. In this post, I want to share my experiences and thoughts on the concept of taking time off and finding renewed inspiration to dive back into the world of blogging.
Amanda, a dear friend of mine, has been giving talks on imposter syndrome, a topic that’s struck a chord with many of us. The fear of not being good enough or facing public embarrassment is something we’ve all felt at some point. But this time, it wasn’t just imposter syndrome that caught my attention. It was a typo – “Winpostor Syndrome” – that sparked a revelation.
Dr. Adam Grant’s book, “Think Again,” discusses the concept of the “Beginner’s Mind,” a state of being open and eager to learn, even in areas where we consider ourselves experts. It’s about challenging our preconceptions and staying curious, which resonated deeply with me. It made me realize that in my desire to get back into blogging, I needed to adopt a “Beginner’s Mind” and approach my writing with renewed enthusiasm.
During this time off, I found myself in a “C VOID,” a state of stagnation and lack of motivation. It wasn’t solely the pandemic’s impact, but a broader feeling of wasting time and not aligning with my true calling as a writer. I experienced a discomfort that was impossible to ignore. Like a dormant writer’s instinct, I felt a resurgence of the compulsion to write, a desire that couldn’t be suppressed any longer.
Much like the experience of being taken off the casino floor, my hiatus was a mix of uncertainty and anxiety. Yet, as in that situation, a turn of events forced me to reevaluate my direction. My heart told me that I’m a writer, and writers can’t suppress the urge to write. It’s an integral part of who we are. The feeling of writing the wrong things or not writing at all was a clear indicator that I was off track.
This revelation led me to embrace the idea of returning to blogging with a fresh perspective. Just as experts in their fields experience “Winpostor Syndrome,” I recognize that feeling a little like an imposter is a sign of growth and evolution. It’s a reminder that I’m venturing into new territories that align with my knowledge and expertise.
As we expand our horizons, we discover new areas to explore within our expertise. It’s like science, constantly evolving as new evidence comes to light. The feeling of uncertainty isn’t a roadblock; it’s a testament to our willingness to challenge ourselves. In a way, imposter syndrome serves as a litmus test, indicating that we’re moving beyond our comfort zones.
So, here I am, excited to share my journey of rediscovery with all of you. The time off has been a period of reflection, growth, and transformation. I’m embracing my “Beginner’s Mind,” eager to approach my writing with curiosity and openness. And to you, my readers, I say, never fear that discomfort – it might just be the nudge you need to reawaken your passions.
As I embark on this new chapter of blogging, I invite you to join me on this journey of rediscovery. Let’s dive into the world of writing with fresh eyes, eager hearts, and a willingness to challenge our preconceived notions. Thank you for being a part of this adventure, and stay tuned for more exciting content to come!”
