Will AI Take Our Jobs or Give Us New Purpose? Navigating the Future of Work
Will AI take your job? or could the AI revolution be an incredible opportunity for us to redefine what work is and make it more meaningful?
If this has been worrying you — you’re not alone
Are you worried AI will take your job? or could the AI revolution in work be an incredible opportunity for us to redefine what work is and make it more productive and meaningful?
And let’s be honest, your job isn’t just a job right? A job is also part of our identity and our life purpose — affecting how the world sees us and how we see and feel about ourselves. So it is understandable why you might be worried about the impact of AI on your job.
So the question “Will AI take our jobs or give us new purpose?” is not just a simple question about work; it’s a profound question about our identity in a rapidly evolving world.
As AI grows more intelligent and capable, will we be rendered obsolete? or will this enable us to find new ways to find renewed purpose in our work?
The Relationship Between Work and Personal Identity
Work is not just a means to earn a living; it significantly shapes our identity and purpose. A recent McKinsey report highlights that nearly two-thirds of US employees see their jobs as a key part of their life’s purpose.
Employees are increasingly seeking work that resonates with their values and gives them a sense of fulfilment.
The relationship between work and personal identity is a complex one. Our jobs give us a sense of belonging, define our social roles, and influence our self-perception.
However, the rise of AI in the workplace introduces new dynamics. AI’s capacity to automate tasks and augment human decision-making is transforming the very nature of work.
This evolution raises crucial questions: What happens to our identity when our work changes drastically? How do we adapt to a workplace where AI plays a significant role?
While work can be a source of pride and fulfilment, I believe over-identification with particular jobs or professions can be risky.
Situations like job loss, career changes, or retirement can profoundly impact our self-esteem and mental health, leading to feelings of worthlessness or purposelessness.
In the context of AI, where job displacement for certain tasks are a significant and reasonable concern, maintaining a more flexible and multifaceted sense of identity becomes vital for our psychological well-being.
The Impact of AI on Jobs and Career Purpose
The debate around AI’s impact on jobs is complex. While there are fears of job displacement, especially in low-skill sectors, AI also creates opportunities for new roles and demands new skills.
This dual impact I think necessitates a more balanced view of AI — not as a threat to human workers, but as a partner in progress.
Embracing AI means reconfiguring work, focusing on human strengths like empathy, lateral thinking and creativity, and harnessing AI for tasks like data processing and routine work.
And at the same time, people are looking for more meaning and purpose from work. A recent McKinsey report had some insightful findings on the purpose people are looking for from work and life.
The rise of AI is often viewed with fear, with concerns about job displacement dominating discussions. However, other recent reports from Goldman Sachs and McKinsey Global Institute suggest a more nuanced picture.
AI could replace up to 300 million full-time jobs but also create new roles, leading to a net increase in jobs.
However, a key point to understand is that this shift will require workers to adapt and acquire new skills, emphasising the importance to upskill and embrace AI in the workplace.
But perhaps your question remains: Yes but will AI take my job or give me a new purpose? AI seems totally out of my control? you might still ask.
The answer to this question I think lies in our response to this technological revolution, in our individual choices and mindset — which is something that is very much under our control I believe.
A World Economic Forum report has looked at the kind of jobs and skills that AI won’t easily replace, and the retraining focus businesses are moving towards in response.
I appreciate this could be a difficult adjustment, especially for those of us who have grown up in an education system that often encourages us to think in more narrow terms about who we are, what we can do, and about different industries and skills and the kind of professions we can work in.
This often labels & limits us at an early age for life to simplistic terms such as a ‘technical person’ or ‘creative person’ for example.
To survive and thrive in this new world of AI enhanced work, I believe we need to think more flexibly about our own capacities, skills and talents, and be open to trying new jobs and work beyond which we may be familiar with — to discover our true potential.
I’m reminded of a quote by Oprah Winfrey that captures well the new mindset I think we need to grow to thrive:
‘The greatest discovery of all time is that a person can change their future by merely changing their attitude’
AI has the potential to elevate our work to new heights, where tasks are more aligned with human strengths like creativity and empathy.
This shift could lead to more fulfilling careers, provided we adapt and evolve alongside the technology.
Practical Ways to Prepare for an AI-Enhanced World
Adapting to AI in the workplace I think requires a significant mindset shift. It’s less about having one particular profession for life, one particular set of professional skills that doesn’t change too much through life.
It’s more about ongoing professional skills and role development, and about finding synergies between human and AI capabilities.
This involves us reconfiguring our work roles, focusing on tasks where humans excel, and leveraging AI for efficiency and innovation where it does this better.
1. Embrace Lifelong Learning: Continuously update your skills and knowledge to stay relevant in an AI-driven job market.
2. Develop Soft Skills: AI excels at routine tasks, but human empathy, creativity, and problem-solving remain irreplaceable.
3. Be Agile: Adaptability is key in rapidly evolving job landscapes influenced by AI. Find and develop skills you enjoy, you are good at, that are needed and AI can’t do well.
4. Specialise: Focus on areas where AI complements human skills, increasing your value in the job market.
5. Understand AI’s Role in Your Industry: Stay informed about how AI is reshaping your field and the opportunities it presents
6. Participate in AI Implementation: Be involved in designing AI-enhanced work processes in your organisation.
7. Adopt a Growth Mindset: Be open to change and willing to learn from AI integration experiences.
Summing Up: A Future of Renewed Purpose in Work with AI
So summing up, I would say AI is not just a harbinger of job displacement, but a powerful catalyst for new forms of work and purpose, and a more dynamic than fixed view of professions & what human work might involve.
By embracing AI, I believe we as individuals, businesses and organisations can find new ways to better align work with an identity and values that are more fulfilling and meaningful to us. The future of work with AI is not about replacement but enhancement, collaboration, and evolution.
The future of work with AI is not a zero-sum game where machines replace humans. Instead, I’d say it’s more about redefining our relationship with work and finding new purposes within this changing landscape.
By adapting, I believe we can turn the challenges posed by AI into opportunities for growth, innovation, and a renewed sense of meaning and purpose in our work.
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But what’s your perspective? do you agree that we can adapt & use AI to improve work and make it more meaningful and productive? or are you more pessimistic?
I’d love to know what you think whatever that is, let me know in the comments and let’s continue this important discussion about AI and the future of work.