Artificial Intelligence (AI) will take over your expertise and decision-making in your lifetime. So, what’s our differentiator?
Leaders often ask me about trends in speaking and how they can be used to influence and engage an audience. It may be your team, your client, or any other stakeholder in the conversation. They are usually looking for some clever or trending technique. Over the last decade, I’ve studied influence and speaking, including how technology can help or hinder our ability to influence. I also have the data to prove my work which is why I think AI will impact most people in the near future.
A Digital Twin Will Replace You in 10 Years
Think about it this way, 10 years ago, no one had access to a device that gave driving directions, i.e. the GPS on our phone. Today, AI can analyse our speech and give advice on speed and language (including biased language), and even SIMULATE our voice patterns including where you take a breath and vocal tone. We don’t even need to have said what the simulator says. Add to this the fact that expert knowledge systems can beat us in basic knowledge awareness. Basic activities will be done by AI. For instance, all the work done by a 1st-year lawyer is now done by a computer. Middle management will be the next target. Even before technology, it was the primary expense cut during times of inflation or depression. Most people will be working with decision-support robots in 10 years.
How Your Speaking and Influence Will Mean More Than Ever
In short, your experience and expertise will no longer differentiate you in the marketplace. Accessible information and expert systems today are good to very good. So what will help you stand out? Your ability to engage, influence, and shift mindsets. It will move you from a manager to a leader. It will help you get your clients and team on your side and it will be the “human” factor that computers, in the near term, won’t be able to replicate.
Your skill in influential leadership needs to amplify your knowledge and expertise. How you speak, how you engage, and how you relate to people will determine who follows you and who ignores you. Think about it every time you speak. This is not just formal presentations, it’s how you relate to people in meetings and in your corridor conversations. Each conversation will nudge you closer to the influencer you need to be to lead your team. This is particularly important with younger team members.
We have systems for all facets of business but we don’t have systems for effective communication. It’s time we started.
“You don’t rise to the level of your potential, you fall to the level of your systems.” – James Clear
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