10 ways to avoid being replaced by AI

For a long time, people have consoled themselves with the saying: "AI won't take your job, but people who know how to use AI might." That is, as long as you learn how to use AI, you won't lose your job, or even take someone else's job.

Unfortunately, that thinking is now outdated. AI no longer bypasses humans.

AI comes right to you, and silently but thoroughly replaces every part of your work. It schedules meetings, writes reports, sends personalized emails, makes decisions... it can even send a "digital copy" of you to online meetings without anyone noticing.

Soon, “automated AI agents” will be able to handle entire workflows without human intervention.

The new reality is that AI will certainly automate many of the jobs you currently do. The question is, will you know how to adapt and get ahead?

The more you use AI, the more replaceable you become.

It may sound counterintuitive, but keep this in mind: The more you leverage AI to increase your productivity, the more you make yourself vulnerable to being replaced by it. It's like relying entirely on Google Maps and then forgetting your way around, or giving up on remembering because "your phone will take care of everything."

In an era where AI takes on the bulk of the mental workload, we are at risk of becoming so “lazy to think” that our brains shrink. Professor Scott Galloway once called AI “Ozempic for business” – a drug that suppresses the need to think, even though the output is still sharp.

Our ancestors didn’t need gyms to stay in shape because survival was enough. Now, we may need “brain gyms” to keep artificial intelligence from doing everything for us.

If you are only judged by the speed and accuracy with which you complete a task, congratulations, you are an easy candidate for automation. But that doesn’t mean you should stop using AI. On the contrary, use AI wisely and, most importantly, reinvest the time it saves you.

The problem is that most businesses still don’t know what to do with the huge amount of time AI will bring. A survey by the auditing firm Deloitte found that 94% of leaders believe AI will change the way work is done. But only 17% have a specific plan to implement that change.

This is a golden opportunity, you don't need to wait for your boss to give you instructions. You can proactively redefine your job starting today.

AI is no longer an "assistant" supporting work, it is directly doing it for you, from scheduling meetings, writing reports to replying to emails and making decisions (Illustration: FIU).

Here are 10 ways to keep AI from kicking you off your desk:

Use AI to save time, then reinvest it in more human-centric tasks.

Instead of dealing with boring tasks, spend time building customer relationships, mentoring colleagues, or solving problems that require empathy and judgment.

Be a bridge between engineering and humans: Be the “translator” between the engineering team and other departments. AI is still very poor at sensing emotions, humor, or understanding implicitly.

Combine skills in a unique way: Become a “multitasker with a focus,” knowing many areas while also having deep expertise in a few hard-to-replace areas.

Don't be too predictable: Repetitive work is easy to automate. Create variety, be flexible, try new things, jump between fields, do things that AI can't model yet.

Developing emotional intelligence: Empathy, persuasion, adaptation, conflict resolution… these are very “human” abilities that AI cannot yet learn.

Gain deep expertise in hard-to-swallow areas: Focus on areas that require real-world context and experience, things that AI still struggles with.

Build your personal brand: Write, speak, share your perspective. When you have a name, you have a better chance of being retained than replaced by software.

Master the AI ​​tools in your field: Don't fight AI, be an AI evangelist. Those who understand the tools are less likely to be replaced by it.

Becoming a human-machine link: AI still needs human supervisors, editors, and proofreaders. Human judgment is increasingly valuable.

Stay curious and flexible: Think of this era not as a "technological revolution," but as a "thinking revolution." The ability to relearn and unlearn will be more important than any fixed skill.

Adapt or be eliminated

You can’t stand still. You can’t “sit back and watch.” The “dodo bird” strategy, which is to say, stay put and hope the AI ​​ignores you, is what drove that species to extinction. And it won’t save you from being replaced.

You need to evolve faster than the digital world. Think of AI as a tool, but don’t forget to cultivate the qualities that AI can’t learn. Become a more creative, flexible, and unpredictable version of yourself, or you’ll be outpaced by the very things you used to use to increase your productivity.

So where are you on the career map? The answer lies somewhere between irreplaceable and obsolete. It all depends on what you choose to do next.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/kinh-doanh/10-cach-de-khong-bi-ai-thay-the-20250506231634874.htm