CD That's Me

A couple of weeks ago someone read one of my blog posts and asked, "Did AI write that?" I see this topic a lot lately and its frustrating. We are told to be more effective and utilize better time management skills - so in other words use AI. And then we are criticiczed for using it too much and are called out for using it even if we have not.

AI is becoming a very hot topic. The dangers, the indicators, the "cheating". Mention you used it and someone immediately says, "I can always tell." But can they though? How can you tell - that extra long hypen or those overused SAT words. So when I was asked, I'll admit it. . . I laughed a little. And the answer is yes and absolutely not.

Maybe sometimes. We've all read those stupidly obvious posts full of insights and politically correct opinions and they are followed by a list of five bullet points that sound like they were written by a very enthusiastic robot who has never attended an actual meeting. Ha, I just used two of those lists in one of my last posts. Sometimes those deserve the criticism and sometimes they make sense.

But using AI isn't cheating. Using AI instead of thinking for yourself is wrong. And that is cheating you.

As event producers, we don't look down on someone for using Photoshop instead of drawing every invitation by hand. We don't criticize accountants for using Excel instead of a calculator. We don't expect graphic designers to create logos with crayons. These are all tools.

AI is another tool, a super smart one that can help us get unstuck, organize our thoughts, tighten our writing, brainstorm ideas, or spit out a spreadsheet faster than any intern.

Where I think people get into trouble is when they only copy, paste, and hit publish. That's where the magic disappears.

Because AI has never stayed up until 2AM fixing a seating chart. It doesn't know the feeling of watching a client burst into happy tears when every detail comes together. It hasn't survived hurricanes, pandemics, power outages, missing speakers, fire alarms (I had 3 in one night) delayed flights, or the one guest who always insists they're "on the list." But we have.

Our experiences are our greatest competitive advantages. AI can't manufacture those.

Use AI to support and organize your very own thoughts. I use it all the time. But I give it a draft and then I add the passion - the stories, the humor, the inside jokes, the sarcastic commentary and the real life examples. And I remove words I would never actually say. I put it in my perspective and make it sound like me.

Because people don't connect with perfectly polished content and lots of SAT words, they connect with passion and authenticity. If someone can instantly tell AI wrote your piece, it probably means you didn't take the time to think it through or finish writing it.

Think of AI as your intern. A really fast, incredibly knowledgeable intern who occasionally makes odd assumptions and still needs a ton of supervision. We love interns!

Would you send a proposal to your biggest client without reviewing something your intern wrote? Of course not. The same should apply here. Don't be embarrassed to use AI. Be embarrassed if you stop thinking. AI needs our perspective. And thankfully, there's still no shortcut for that.

So what do you think? Did I write this post - you better believe I did.