People are now paying for...🤯

We were just saying so long to summer and suddenly… hello, October. 👋🎃 Along with the wind down of the year comes the wind down of my Future of Networking Forecast. Today, we’re taking a look at the 8th of 10 trends set to shape how we’ll build and grow professional relationships in an AI world. As always, we’ll start with a quick recap:

Foundational Shifts:

🔗 Trend 1: AI-Enhanced Networking
🔗 Trend 2: Agents, Avatars, and Automation
🔗 Trend 3: Professional Networks as a Measurable Asset

Behavioral and Cultural Shifts:

🔗 Trend 4: Remote by Default, In-Person by Design
🔗 Trend 5: Privacy is a Power Move
🔗 Trend 6: The Rise of Micro-communities

Human-Centric Shifts:

🔗 Trend 7: Connection Architecture is a New and Niche Skill

The thing about Artificial Intelligence is that it feels... artificial. People can feel when something is AI-generated—even when it's technically perfect. And on the flip side, people can see AI-generated uselessness from a mile away, otherwise known as AI slop.

While AI is becoming a great co-pilot for us, it’s also demonstrating when, where, and why it may not make a great replacement.

🔮 My eighth prediction for the Future of Networking is the human touch becoming a premium.

AI is winning at automation, but losing at authenticity.

As everyone moves towards more automated communication, we’re going to quickly lose the unique personalities, quirks, style, and tone in our messages. In fact, studies have already found that we’re sounding more ChatGPT in our daily conversations. You’ve likely heard of AI agents becoming all the rage—imagine what we’ll lose as we start automating away our actions.

In short, what we’ll lose is what makes us human: our judgment, instincts, and ability to read the moment.

You used to be rewarded for being efficient. Now you’re rewarded for being real. (Works out great for people like me with cheesy and awkward jokes that AI can’t reproduce! 🤡)

As with any swing in a particular direction, the real opportunity lies in the gap that remains. In this case, with companies racing to apply AI to as many use cases as possible, there is real opportunity for humans to stand out for things we—dare I say it—previously took for granted, such as our capacity to build and share trust with one another, feel connection, and work together, often coming up with ideas and collaborations that weren’t coded for.

The concept of “being more human” sounds abstract—but here’s what it actually looks like in practice:

1. Audit your online presence. Do your emails, DMs, comments, captions and posts feel human, or robotic? Do they evoke a feeling, or are they generic and forgettable? Do they feel like you truly?

   1. ☝️TIP: Look at your texts and emails to friends and teammates to see your style, tone, and personality. Is that reflected in your online persona? “Digital body language” is your differentiator.

2. Keep a human in the loop when it makes sense to do so. This doesn’t mean not to use AI. You could, for example, use Delphi.AI to clone yourself so, while powered by AI, everything it says, does and sounds like is you! (See this post for more.) Plus, chat apps like Vinly.co and Geneva can help you stay connected to other humans (In fact, Geneva’s motto is “the online place to find your offline people.”)

☝️ For more tips & tricks, read a few of these past articles:

• Be present.

• Stand out and build influence.

• Offer unique ideas to provide unique value to others.

• Build relationships with the right people.

Another way the human touch will become a premium? Consider how many chatbots there are in customer service. Soon, you’ll pay extra to engage with a real person.

In fact, some companies are already doing this. For example: Beehiiv, the newsletter publishing platform I use, offers a free membership—but you won’t have access to a human when it comes to customer support. For any troubleshooting, you’ll need to self-navigate their FAQ library. 🙄 While technically you could find your answer there, I personally got a bit frustrated when I needed to do that, and recognized that I would gladly play for the upgrade if it meant I always have a human to chat it out with— instead of a shrugging chatbot. 🤖🤷‍♂️

Till next time,
Nicole

“But wait, there’s more!” 👇

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