In today’s market, AI is becoming more prominent. Some would argue that if you don’t have AI or good software in your company, your company will soon be irrelevant. However, is AI really taking jobs away from the market, or is it creating new opportunities? More importantly, how can we as business owners and employees adapt properly to this shift?
As early as 2008, the market has seen mom-and-pop shops closing at an alarming rate, replaced by online commerce and larger retail chains. These shops were unable to keep up with decreased market share (i.e., increased competition) and technological advances that allow brands to become global and compete all over the world. If businesses are unable to attract attention (online and in-person) and bend to the demands of the market (i.e., hybrid work), they are less likely to succeed. This means we can’t ignore technological change, but we also can’t let it erode what makes us effective as people in business.
As AI oversimplifies and completes mundane (and not so mundane) tasks, society has increasingly overcomplicated the place of the human in society. What is worse is that as AI started to take our jobs, we as humans have also overcomplicated our own places in society to the point where we have been de-rooted and, in our minds, have no place to be planted.
While it isn’t a carnal sin to enjoy the luxuries of AI (your search history may tell you otherwise), we as humans are becoming increasingly “stuck” due to the normalcy and simple routine that AI provides. It is easier than ever to get home from work, lay on the couch, and doom-scroll for hours while technology completes essays, cleans our houses, cooks our food, and takes care of our children.
In our “enjoyment” of AI, especially as Western culture has experienced it, we have displaced, devalued, and weakened human life in all walks of life. What was meant to make our lives easier has arguably made things more difficult. However, it is not the creation of AI that leads to human life becoming displaced, devalued, and weakened, but the way we as a culture are submitting to the very thing we created.
Biosphere 2 in Arizona, USA, was created in the 1980s. The intention of the biosphere was to create an enclosure capable of supporting human life in the event that the Earth itself was not able to support it. This biosphere would prevent the elements outside of the enclosure from impacting the life inside.
Long story short, the trees grew faster but fell over once they reached a certain height. Without wind and storms, they couldn’t develop strong, deep roots to stay upright. Not only was the resistance important for the roots, but it made the tree as a whole more resistant to weather patterns it hadn’t actually experienced yet. In other words, it got stronger the more it endured.
While humans look, and potentially are, different than trees (yes, just, potentially), we need resistance to grow, but in a world of AI and technology, we are living in a world of comfort, one that is resistant to resistance. For business owners and employees, this comfort can mean weaker teams, poorer service and less adaptability in the face of competition.
Yet, this isn’t always OUR fault.
Society has created an atmosphere where AI and technology are highly valued and will be needed to compete, both in personal and professional settings. Consequently, the more we invest our time and resources in AI and the less we invest in people and develop our “soft” skills, the more valuable those skills will become.
So ultimately, how do we, as business owners and employees looking to make a change in our companies, combat this trend without ignoring the reality that technology is likely here to stay?
- Be disciplined and consistent – give yourself resistance
Build daily habits that make you a more reliable, disciplined worker or leader. By adding personal resistance to your schedule, you strengthen your ability to compete in business.
2. Talk to one new person a day
In a world where soft skills are becoming increasingly sparse, it is important that we work to grow as a professional and a leader by learning skills that AI can’t replace. From the littlest of conversations, we can learn a lot – and it gives you an opportunity to see where you need to grow when working with others.
3. Go to the gym / go for a walk each day
Invest in your physical health to maintain the energy, focus, and resilience needed to lead teams, serve clients, and innovate.
4. Learn something new / read a book
Stay competitive by continuing to learn. Whether it’s industry knowledge or personal growth, investing in learning keeps you ahead.
5. Challenge your own beliefs
Great businesses adapt because their leaders and teams are willing to question assumptions. Resistance sharpens your thinking. If an idea breaks, it wasn’t strong enough to begin with.
Being successful in the age of AI doesn’t mean being robotic, it also doesn’t mean overcomplicating what works. It means staying deeply human and leading with the kind of strength no software can replicate.
What do you think? How is your business navigating this shift?
Living Root Financials 
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