Is the future of work being outside more?
Houston, we’ve got a personality problem. Hear me out…
“All content reads exactly the same,” says everyone, every day.
It’s been like that. It’s just been extra like that since AI.
If you’ve worked in a marketing team, you’re used to obeying and adapting to Google’s moon cycles. It evolved from keyword stuffing to 3000-word articles to “cut the fluff and get straight to the point.”
That last era made me a little feisty, which is rare for a happy days Libra.
I write for human connection. My managers edited for Google. Which meant a lot of this and comments like “made me laugh, but let’s go directly into the bullets.” 😶
I got really good at cutting words and optimizing for ranks. I got increasingly bad about being proud of my writing.
The final versions were dry. A mere summary of facts. Sparking zero emotion.
I get it. You want to rank, you follow the rules. It’s Google’s world and we’re just living it. But the Internet quickly filled itself with copies of copies of copies of the #1 article.
Each one slightly longer. Slightly more scannable. None we really needed.
We produced content en masse, without thinking twice about the internet we’re building. We got lost in the rat race that’s content and algorithms and more is mejor.
Lo and behold, readers got tired of the hastily written, unoriginal copies.
And now we’re in the AI content era, where everyone’s a writer.
Correction: Where everyone can type a prompt, press a button, and roll out articles to copy-paste and publish.
The other day, I was coworking with one of my girls. We talked careers and inevitably got to the question: “Will writers survive AI or do we need a plan B?”
(Marry rich is the current plan B. Not quite solid-proof)
I believe we will survive. But not every writer will.
Hear me out:
Cooking up a content strategy? Easy with AI.
Producing content? Done in your sleep.
Optimizing for AEO/GEO? The minions are on it.
These parts of most content roles will likely soon be automated. No writer needed. And I love that. Because, Lord, I’m having Google optimization-fatigue after 15+ years.
But if that part becomes AI-driven, which part won’t?
The personality part, is my bet.
🚇 Hot take: You can’t write compelling content if you’re not outside.
AI can remix information, but it can’t write about lived experiences. YOUR experiences.
It doesn’t know what it’s like to live in foreign countries. Make friends in your thirties. Have imposter syndrome. Saying yes just for the giggles. End up at Maxwell’s suite on a cruise. Yell at the TV because the Island boys fuck up in Casa Amor. Unexpectedly fall for a much younger guy. Feel nostalgic. Have great, messy, hilarious adventures.
The more time you spend doing life, the more interesting observations you can bring back to your writing. And it’s those refreshing thoughts that people engage with.
The internet used to reward information, but I’m convinced it’ll start rewarding perspective. From-human-for-humans content.
The best thing you can do right now to get ahead has nothing to do with AI. Or sitting in front of a computer screen. It’s to go out and have some good old fun.
Try a hole-in-the-wall restaurant. Book the trip. Shoot your shot. Get to know the random neighbor. Join a meetup. See some standup. Even better, do some standup.
Go collect stories and opinions and experiences.
Having a personality can’t be automated.
I might be wrong. We might all be perfectly fine consuming perfectly optimized generic robot content, summarized by our near-perfect robot assistants.
But with the way we’ve all been loudly complaining, I think personalities will have a big moment online. That’s the content that will outlast AI and see engagement.
If we’re all using the same tech to create with, the only way to differentiate is to be different. To use your one-of-a-kind personality. That’s your AI-survival superpower.
Tell me, what's the most interesting thing you've done lately that had absolutely nothing to do with work? 🤩