From Asparagus to AI: A Personal Odyssey
[Article written on September 6, 2023 by Stephanie Rebecca Renverseau with the support of the Open AI GPT-4 algorithm for about 20%. Images created with Adobe Express, all rights reserved, 2023].
Have you ever conversed with an AI? And what was your feeling?
If you are one of the fully convinced people, I can only advise you to continue your exploration, of course always responsibly and enlightened. For the others, this article is for you.
In various situations, I have had to meet people, even entities that are reluctant to use it, or even totally reject it. And why would you tell me? Their reasons are usually based on fear, a negative first experience, or simply a lack of understanding of its potential.
And it’s funny, because in preparing my next workshop on these AIs, I wondered how I was going to approach the subject with the potential reluctant people in the room, and I realized that ultimately, we could compare the rejection of AI to our experiences with… vegetables.
Let me tell you a story… When I was young, I considered certain vegetables as sworn enemies. Beets, asparagus, and spinach were the top 3 that gave me chills just to hear them. Because, like many of us, my first experiences with these vegetables were far from pleasant.
I don’t really remember the first time I tasted beets. It was probably at the school cafeteria, and they were certainly anything but appetizing. I remember them as soft, full of water, and looking more like pieces of reddish plastic than real vegetables. Asparagus and spinach were no better. So much so that for years, I banned them from my diet, based on these first experiences.
The arguments I put forward were solid, or at least I thought so. But, in retrospect, I realized that I had made a decision based on isolated and non-representative experiences. What do you want, at that young age, we rarely go back on our positions, do we?
This reaction is not so different from that of some people towards AI. I say this without judgment because I understand these feelings all too well, having felt them myself. Yes, my first experiences with AI were limited, I didn’t understand why I couldn’t get “wow” answers like others. After a first disconcerting or disappointing experience, it is tempting to reject it completely. I was disappointed and confused, and I was not far from throwing in the towel.
However, just like I rediscovered vegetables, I also rediscovered AI. Years later, someone managed to convince me to retaste these vegetables, this time properly prepared, to tell you everything: homemade.
Maybe it won’t surprise you, but it was a great experience for me with a lot of preconceived ideas and yet! I discovered that I loved asparagus with their finesse of taste and spinach, well cooked, are of a sweet flavor that had nothing to do with the green seaweed of my childhood. I must confess, however, that beets are still not part of my regular diet, but at least they are more tolerable to me.
That’s when I understood the importance of giving a second chance, of not relying on a single experience. Not to judge a book by its cover as they say, or a vegetable by its first tasting… In the same way, I gave AI a second chance. I was accompanied of course and I took the time to understand how it works and how to use it effectively. I discovered that AI can be a valuable tool. It has the potential to transform our way of working, learning and communicating.
What I want to make readers understand is that just because a first experience was disappointing, or because you don’t see how AI can be useful to you, or even because its potential is as powerful as its dangerousness, you should stop there. I think that AI is only a tool, what it becomes depends only on what we do with it.
That’s why I invite you to give AI a second chance, just like I gave asparagus a second chance. Don’t be discouraged by a negative first experience. Take the time to understand how AI works and what its potential is. Who knows? You might be pleasantly surprised.
If you don’t know where to start, I will be delighted to guide you.
See you soon.
[Article written on September 6, 2023 by Stephanie Rebecca Renverseau with the support of the Open AI GPT-4 algorithm for about 20%. Images created with Adobe Express, all rights reserved, 2023].
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