How Easy It Is to Use Generative AI

I've already blogged the primary reasons why generative AI is crucial for your career going forward. For those of you who haven't already played around with it, let me reassure you, it's much easier to learn than you think.

But it's also quite different than conducting a search on the Web. This isn't about plugging a term or phrase into a search engine and scanning a list of results. Generative AI is more like a brainstorming partner. The term "co-pilot" is used a lot.

Your "searches" are actually called "prompts" for generative AI – and it shouldn't be a one-time shot where you plug in a prompt and get a result. You want to keep interacting with the generative AI tool that you're using to continuously refine what you're tackling.

So with generative AI, you're able to problem solve in ways that search engines really can't. And your ability to input the right type of prompt makes all the difference in the world. That's why there's a little bit of a learning curve to this that doesn't exist for search engines. It's not a high hurdle. But it does take a little bit of effort so that you can get the most out of the experience, with as much accuracy as you can – as well as in as little time as you can since a big advantage of generative AI is about saving you time and making you more productive.

So how should you start? I would start by simply listening to this three-part "How to Think About AI" podcast on Freakonmics Radio – with the last episode running on September 6th. The three episodes are entitled:

• AI is Changing Everything: Does That Include You?
• New Technologies Always Scare US. Is AI Any Different?
• Can AI Take a Joke?

That will bring you well up-to-speed about what generative AI is – and isn't. It will give you a sense of what it does well. How far along it is in its development. And how mind-blowing it can be. As well as tackle the bigger picture issues such as does AI mean the end of the human race as we know it, etc.

Then you should choose one – or more – of the free generative AI tools, create an account, and go from there. Opening an account is ridiculously easy. You input a minimal amount of information. Then depending on which tool you picked, go to YouTube and watch a brief tutorial on how to use that tool (here's a 27-minute tutorial on ChatGPT that's pretty good). That's the fastest way to do it as most of the tools don't have self-explanatory guides. Placing the AI tool on your mobile phone will enhance the likelihood that you will use it on a regular basis. In my next blog, I will compare those tools.