AI Deskilling: Embracing the Shift and Unleashing Creativity
Welcome back to Elevated, and our continuing conversation about the practical everyday use of AI for Kitchen & Bath design businesses. In this episode, we’re getting into a controversial topic: AI deskilling. But don’t panic, because we’re going to explore why it’s not as dire as it may sound, and how it can actually lead to new opportunities for growth and creativity.
What Deskilling Really Means
To start, let’s define deskilling. It’s the process of reducing the level of skill needed to carry out a job, and it’s been happening in the economy for decades. With the rise of AI, the scope and scale of deskilling are set to increase exponentially. But the question remains: is deskilling a negative consequence of technological progress?
It’s natural for us to resist change and cling to the familiar, but here’s my perspective on deskilling. As technology steps in to handle the more tactical aspects of a job, it opens up space for us to focus on the uniquely human-centric skills that become even more valuable in this new landscape. These skills include innovation, vision, strategy, and connection.
The Benefits of AI Deskilling in Design Businesses
Let’s consider another technological revolution for a specific area of expertise: calculators. Did calculators put mathematicians out of business? No, they didn’t. Instead, calculators allowed more people to use mathematics and enabled skilled mathematicians to tackle even more complex problems. Similarly, AI can help us ask the right questions, make sense of vast amounts of data, and turn insights into action. While using AI tools does require some understanding of the underlying concepts, it ultimately democratizes access to knowledge and empowers us to create in ways we couldn’t before.
With AI at our fingertips, we can create images, videos, and spreadsheets with additional functionalities that used to require years of learning. AI helps us bring our ideas to life by translating our words into visuals, making video editing and effects more accessible, and even assisting with complex tasks like coding using Visual Basic scripts.
Embracing AI Deskilling: Focusing on Human-Centric Skills
That’s all good and well, you might be thinking, but what about the specific implications of AI deskilling in the Kitchen & Bath design business. As AI makes it easier for novices to dabble in cabinet design, it’s possible that competition may increase, and some clients might choose to DIY their projects. However, it’s important to remember that your design skills, expertise, and experience cannot be replaced by AI. With a newfound ability to create rough drafts or experiment with ideas, clients might actually approach you with a clearer understanding of what they want, allowing you to bring their vision to life more efficiently.
My stance is this: AI deskilling is not something to fear, but rather an opportunity to embrace the shift and focus on the human-centric skills that technology can’t replicate. By harnessing the power of AI to augment our abilities, we can unlock a world of creativity and innovation that benefits both businesses and clients alike.
Be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss the next episode where I talk about my kryptonite and how a very basic AI function is saving me.