Reading about the fast developments of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is both terrifying and exciting.
At this rate, AI will surely replace some of our freelance jobs very soon. Rest assured, most of your jobs will be safe for the foreseeable future.
But that doesn’t mean you get to relax and watch what happens. It’s time for you to take action and prepare for the AI-dominated future ahead.
Instead of getting scared of how AI can replace your job or quitting freelance to find a delivery job, you should find ways to take advantage of this technology.
Not all AI tools are bad. They are actually incredibly useful for freelance work when you use them right.
I thought about this a lot. As a full-time freelance writer myself, at first, I was also worried about AI. Then I figured out a way to outsmart AI and use those tools to improve my workflow. Here’s how.
AI Tools Are Learning Fast
Reading about the AI tools like ChatGPT and Midjourney in 2022 hit me like a ton of bricks. I was not expecting such advanced AI tools to be in our hands so soon.
But the truth is AI has been in development for a very long time. We knew it was coming.
Yet when news channels started covering ChatGPT, most people were surprised by it. And some even got depressed knowing it will soon replace their jobs.
For example, ChatGPT is already impacting the IT support industry. And it’s slowly replacing many other jobs like copywriting, programming, designing, and more.
It’s amazing how fast these AI technologies are evolving. These tools can learn really fast and improve upon their flaws in a matter of days. ChatGPT itself has gone through several iterations since its beta release to the public in late 2022.
In fact, some of the startups in the AI fields got destroyed by ChatGPT.
In a previous article, I talked about AI writing tools that are smart enough to write great articles. Those startups charged a monthly fee from users to give access to the tool.
But they instantly became irrelevant with the introduction of ChatGPT, an open-source free-to-use tool that writes articles 10 times better than any other AI writing tool.
If you think about it, even professionals in the AI industry are vulnerable to this AI revolution.
How Are You Going To React?
I wasn’t really worried about AI tools. For a long time, I thought that it would take decades before AI tools could outsmart humans. And I thought AI tools would never be as creative as humans.
Well, it did not take long for me to realize I was wrong. After checking out ChatGPT and Midjourney, I realized how advanced these tools really are.
For a few days, I kept thinking about how I will lose my job as a writer to an AI tool. How I will have to go back to an ordinary job earning minimum pay.
But after that initial shock, I realized that this is not really a bad thing.
I realized that if I think creatively enough, I could use AI tools to my advantage. I could learn faster, find information faster, and get help from AI to be a better writer.
The advancement of AI technologies has both pros and cons. But what matters the most is how you look at it and how you’re reacting to it.
How To Outsmart AI
Well, AI tools are a thousand times smarter than a regular human being like me. So I don’t think I could ever outsmart it. But, I have something the AI doesn’t.
I can control it!
AI tools are powerful and have the ability to replace jobs. But they still need to be operated by someone. And so far, only humans can use it.
The best thing you can do right now to ensure the safety of your career is to learn to use AI tools like ChatGPT and incorporate them into your daily workflows and routine.
In fact, there are actually new jobs in the AI industry specifically for people who can control AI tools. It’s called prompt engineering. Soon, there will be more jobs in this category for people to explore.
When one door closes, another one opens!
5 Ways To Take Advantage Of AI
It’s up to you to figure out how to use AI tools to help with your own job. Because it depends on the industry and the type of job you’re doing.
Here’s how I’m using ChatGPT to improve your writing skills.
My Own Research Assitant
I always dreamed of having my own assistant to do research for my articles. And thanks to ChatGPT, now I have one.
ChatGPT is the perfect companion for doing research on topics. Whenever I want to grab a quote or a statistic on a specific topic, I just ask ChatGPT to search it for me.
Critique My Work
I also asked ChatGPT to critique my work. Getting constructive criticism is the best way to improve your skills. And ChatGPT does a great job of analyzing my work and giving me specific tips to improve. Sometimes it can be a bit harsh though.
Create Quick Outlines
Before I get started on an article, I often create a basic outline for that piece. It usually involves a lot of thinking. But now, I ask ChatGPT to write the outline for me. Then I make modifications as necessary. I don’t always do this, only sometimes.
Rewrite My Work
The ability to rephrase text is another cool thing you can do with ChatGPT. Just copy and paste a paragraph and ask the AI to rephrase it. Sometimes, it will rewrite your text even better than you do.
Get Topic Suggestions
I sometimes use ChatGPT to get topic suggestions for potential blog posts. It’s not always perfect but it does a great job of helping me get the basic ideas for new topics.
ChatGPT is not perfect. It still has many flaws and some of its responses lack depth and that human touch. But it’s learning fast and will be improved within the next couple of years.
6 Things You Can Do To Secure Your Job From AI
I was also curious to find out what ChatGPT thought of it replacing some of our jobs. And find out what advice it would give me to secure my future as a freelance writer.
So, I asked ChatGPT “What can I do to secure my job as a freelance writer from being replaced by AI?”
And here are the tips it gave me in return. Rather than copy-pasting the text, I decided to turn it into an infographic. Because the advice it gave me are that good.
What’s Next?
It’s all in your hands now.
Are you going to sit back and watch as AI technologies continue to learn and evolve?
Or are you going to create a plan and take immediate action to better yourself, improve your skills, and learn to take advantage of AI tools to advance your career?
For further reading, check out my articles on how to learn new skills.