We’re both CEOs and that job is ranked 64 in a list of 65 jobs that will survive AI. Call me a cockroach all you want, but I am happy to be amongst the chosen ones. The jobs that are safer require human attributes such as social skills, interpersonal relationships, and emotional intelligence. Use of arms and legs is an added plus as robots are not good movers. It is not a coincidence that these were the same skills that helped our ancestors survive the sabre tooth tiger.
High salary makes you safer
This assumes that you are making a fat salary because your job is so complex, not because you are a nepo baby. That it cannot be written into an algorithm that can be followed by anyone. Elon got a pay package of some $56 billion approved last year. The President of the United States makes half a million dollars. Research shows that the more you make the less likely your job can be automated. I’m not in that league, but my income is a tad more than the salary of the Prime Minister of India 🙂 (Ok, I’ll save you a search – PM makes around Rs 1.66L pm).
In 2019, IBM helped put together a study that said AI could put 130K federal jobs at risk. A lot of them were in the tax and audit areas. No surprises there – it is based on rules and digitization means not much use of arms and legs over there. I mention this to give some context to the job slashing underway in the US and elsewhere.
Are you leading the human life?
I interviewed six female CEOs and CMOs in April for my new No Money Marketing podcast. One blew up a lab, by accident. Another got kidnapped – and then demanded a better cup of tea. One got certified as a style consultant because she believes in doing more, another relocated continents…You get the picture. Poor Grok, however “rebellious” he may be can’t actually DO this stuff. That is why these fancy jobs will continue to exist.
To be human is to continually redefine what makes you, and other people, happy.
I try new things because otherwise I wouldn’t be having fun. Along the way I learn new skills and it is this composite that AI cannot replicate.
We have to frequently hop off the escalator and jump on the walkalator to truly experience the joy of being human.
I like Hanumankind
My mom made our clothes, taught us to read, cooked, learned Hindi and Swahili as an adult, knitted me a custom sweater with a picture of my dear departed cat to take to college, raised chickens, ducks, turkeys, was active in the school fundraisers and so much more. She is still cooking and working on her tapestry, into her late 80s. None of her skills has been replicated by AI yet. Most people of that generation could make stuff – and live off the grid if they had to.
The modern equivalent of that would be all of the above skills plus the ability to create digital products that appeal to the extremely niche tastes that all of us are developing. I confess I like the music and am impressed by the videos of Hanumankind. He grew up around the world and achieved the epitome of white collar success – a job in Goldman Sachs! And then he chucked it to pursue his craft while working as a gym trainer. The sort of choices that Indian parents have nightmares about. Yet it is that combo of experiences that makes his music stand out, and help him with his superb marketing. Just coming up with “hmk otw” as a catchphrase is so cool! (If you’re wondering about the subject line, LJP are my initials and otw stands for On The Way, of course.)
Will everyone have to be a creator?
It’s college season and this is the fear of many parents of awesomely average kids – I stole that phrase from a Facebook group with 32K members! If you can get to a PhD level you can enter the workforce doing complex things and a high salary (which is insurance against AI) then regular education and the corporate path will still function. But if you are not suited for that, you have to find things that AI cannot do. At the base level that is anything that involves complex physical coordination. Next level would be physical skills plus any of the higher order human skills, coupled with some complex decision making.
My teen does cool stuff with bleach and old jeans. My solidly middle-class values hairdresser of 20 years was like “Wow! Like Amiri, but handmade!” Whether it is the saccharine sweet wedding videos being shot in parks across India or the home chefs churning out snacks, or the custom cakes at every birthday party, or the dozens of shades of hair colour on Q-commerce, everyone is now creative and wants to materialize their vision. Individualism is definitely a trend for the future.
One of my podcast guests, Payal Nath, started as a shoe designer, then worked with the government to promote handicrafts for 18 years and now runs a social enterprise in basketry that provides work to 10,000 weavers. She says the current avatar would not have been possible without the experiences of the past. Same with the other guest on that show – Radhika Mahadevan – who has worked in luxury hotels, the marketing team at Wipro, got into the social space at Azim Premji University and now runs Birdsong, a clean beauty enterprise that strives to provide employment for underserved women. It is the winding path that leads to uniqueness.
Prior to the industrial revolution, everyone was a creator, and maybe we’re heading back that way.
What’s the implication for brands
I get irritated when the cook criticizes the ripeness of the avocado or pineapple I have procured and suggests I should ask “them” to send better ones next time. I’m trying to explain that there is “them” at the app to talk to. It is a missing product feature – assessing fruits as per their “days to consumption” which any physical shop offers and which an algorithm should be able to do quite easily.
SaaS software that has a human support team that steps in when things go wrong – and admits that they are in beta is a great example of mixing AI with humanity. I am happy with whatsapp commerce – but usually trigger big purchases when the handoff to the human is smooth, and the human is an actual person who is authorized to be a human.
Where there is a human decision-maker, emphasize the human attributes. Efficiency, accuracy, and speed are a baseline expectation. Empathy, emotional connectedness, the personal relationship – that is the bit you can use to differentiate your brand from the others. Starbucks is a big global chain, but I like that the two women behind the counter at my local shop recognize me and my favourite drink when I show up.
True luxury is a product or service that someone has lavished love and attention on. AI can help scale that a million times, but cannot replace it.
Enjoy your week – and check out the podcast!
