Afraid of AI? Here’s What to Do Instead
Take a walk through any office, wait online for others to join a Teams or Zoom call, or bump into an old co-worker at Starbucks——you’ll hear the same concern:
“Is AI going to take my job?”
It’s a fair question. Unless you’re in a profession that involves fixing plumbing, laying concrete, or replacing brake pads, it’s hard not to feel like the digital tidal wave of AI might wash you out of relevance.
But here’s the thing: AI isn’t just a threat. It’s a tool. One that’s already helping most of us—whether we realize it or not.
Like right now. You’re reading something that was written by a human (me) and shaped by an AI assistant. I still had to think, edit, and guide it. But it helped me get here faster—and better. It’s not a replacement. It’s a force multiplier.
Fear is normal. Staying afraid is optional.
The worst thing to do with AI is nothing. To bury your head and hope this all blows over. Spoiler: it won’t.
The second worst thing? To become a doomsday narrator in your own story.
The better option is this: get curious. Learn how to use it. Let it help you. Because once you stop seeing AI as a rival and start using it like an ally, everything changes. Along with helping you, look how it can help those who work with or for you. At Intertech, everyone, including the admin is reading a book or attending a course on AI for their job.
Here’s how to stay relevant—and even thrive—with AI:
1. Become a “human-AI hybrid.”
The people who succeed in the next decade won’t be the ones who avoid AI. They’ll be the ones who use it daily—and pair it with judgment, emotional intelligence, and common sense. Think you + AI = amplified value. For my software application development firm, like mine, AI represents the challenge that AI will reduce our billable hours. This is the reality of the future. Either we embrace it, or others will surpass what we can deliver.
2. Use it to eliminate the junk work.
AI is great at first drafts, summaries, idea generation, and repetitive tasks. Let it take care of the shallow work so you can focus on the deep stuff—strategy, creativity, relationships, leadership.
3. Focus on what AI can’t do (yet).
Things like building trust, mentoring a junior colleague, closing a deal with nuance, or navigating politics inside a client’s organization. That’s still very much human territory. Strengthen your relationships with clients, employees, partners, or others.
4. Stop waiting for perfect. Start experimenting.
Use ChatGPT, CoPilot, or others. Not sure where to start? Tell AI about your job and ask for feedback. Try an AI meeting note taker. Let AI generate a first pass on a report. You don’t have to be an expert. You just have to start. Every new skill starts with awkwardness.
5. Ask AI to help you with AI.
Open up to AI and share what you’re about, what you do, your goals, and where you have questions and want answers. Have it be a dialogue not a one-and-done question. Guide the AI on the journey not vice versa. Expect to be surprised. The more you interact with your AI, the more it learns about you and will guess what you want next. And, finally, a good thing about AI is to think how often it calls in sick, gets tired of you asking it to answer the same question, or doubts what it’s saying… zero.
Bottom line? Yes, I will change work. It already is. But it’s not coming to replace the people who adapt—it’s coming to help them outperform everyone else.
So the question isn’t “Will AI take my job?”
It’s “Am I willing to evolve with it?”
And if you’re already using AI to draft blogs, answer emails, and prep for meetings… congratulations. You’re not behind. You’re ahead.
