Human Touch vs. AI on 7 Cups Learning and Development
Here on 7 Cups, we value genuine connection. The human touch is what primarily sets us apart from other platforms. While AI tools are very helpful, it's important to remember the power of expressing ourselves authentically. Your tone and style are uniquely you, and that can be lost through overuse of AI for writing. AI, as a general rule, should be used as a supplement to your writing, not a complete replacement.
For example, we offer JIIT (just-in-time training) via Noni tips for chats. We all get stuck sometimes (even me!). People are dynamic, and situations vary. We believe AI can provide helpful nudges and inspiration.
I bring this up here in the 7 Cups Leadership community specifically to address concerns about AI use in learning, training, and testing.
Relying on AI to do all the work for you will hinder personal growth, reduce critical thinking skills, and can make information harder to absorb and retain. This is true for our Active Listening Tests, the Academy courses, and most of our leadership roles. Cutting corners might be tempting, but it's not beneficial for your long-term development.
I've heard some teams encounter instances in which they suspect excessive AI usage at the cost of quality. Team leaders, I advise setting the expectation that applicants use their own words as much as possible. You might even consider establishing this in your training materials.
There's no denying that AI is fast becoming a normalized part of our world, but like anything else, it should be used in moderation, as a tool and not a crutch.
Do you have tips for striking a balance with AI to get the most out of it?
Great post Heather!
I really respect this sentence
"There's no denying that AI is fast becoming a normalized part of our world, but like anything else, it should be used in moderation, as a tool and not a crutch."
Far too often people, especially youngsters, are using AI to do everything, even Google is using it now.
I wonder who had to input all those libraries of books!
@MistyMagic
I wonder it as well! I use AI for entertainment purposes myself
@Heather225 As a Community Mentor Leader. I have been asked about things relating to this line several times recently:-
"I've heard some teams encounter instances in which they suspect excessive AI usage at the cost of quality. "
We all know that the forum leader teams work so very hard to create interesting and accurate content that is relevant to their support communities but they do not seem to get the recognition they deserve. This ends up with teams and Leaders feeling unwanted, demoralised and ignored.
When we are leading teams that are working so hard to boost engagement in the support topics under 'Mental Health' often our post count will be concentrated on responding to those users that are actively seeking support and not entertainment. These posts are often drowned out and buried under the thousands of entertainment posts that others are generating using AI, in turn this means that those who come to 7 Cups looking for mental health support cannot find it easily.
It is obvious that the support communities are now really struggling because of this. We know from experience that people drift to areas that are active. I just wondered, if allowing and accepting this use of AI to artificially boost forum engagement figures is going to be the trend going forwards, and that your OP that is now over a year old no longer applies?
@MistyMagic
Hi Misty, thanks for following up on this post. While people come for mental health/emotional support, a great number of our community come to entertain themselves in other ways or take their mind off of core worries. It's also difficult to truly confirm what is AI. Sometimes people use a mix of AI and their own wording, and we don't want to stifle them or discourage them, especially our newer users who we need to treat with sensitivity as we get them used to our community. We just kind of have to see how AI evolves before we apply any concrete guidelines.
However, if leaders are suspected to be leveraging AI in ways that don't serve us, or that are being used to cheat, please flag this for our review. We definitely don't want to condone this.
Bump
