Using (or not using) AI

I just wanted to take a moment to talk about AI and how I use it (or not) in my little yoga business. These views are personal to me, I am not judging or commenting on what anyone else chooses to do.

I was just doing some admin at the back end of my website, and a prompt popped up at me inviting me to create an AI agent to help my customers navigate my website. It made me wince a little, if I am honest. Having a website is something I choose to have to make bookings easier to manage, and to 'showcase' my offerings. Being on social media is a 'necessary evil', Facebook allows me to connect with my clients and potential new clients too. Ditto Instagram and Google.

But from my perspective, using generative AI - using artificial intelligence as a creative tool in my yoga business - would be stripping it of three key things:

1. My own imagination, personality, intelligence, creativity, and energy. Yes, I could train AI to get to know me and my style, goodness knows AI could outstrip me in yoga knowledge (or any knowledge) - but it wouldn't have heart behind it. Am I making any sense?

2. Prana. All living, natural things have prana, qi, or energy within them. In my view, and I am prepared to be wrong, computers do not.

3. Satya - often translated as truth or essence, the alignment of one's thoughts, speech, and actions with reality. I want my character to shine through my teaching and my interactions online and in class. Even if AI could do a better job, its not the real me.

I want to be clear here, so I am not misleading anybody. I do use AI. When writing for my blog I have asked it to check grammar and spellings via Grammarly (a great tool - although I no longer use it so apologies if you notice errors!). I have used it to brainstorm ideas, and create lists of resources for activities. I have asked it to write/improve meditation scripts a few times in the more distant past, but quickly saw it for what it was - a two-dimensional tool that was taking away one of my most enjoyable tasks. I LOVE writing meditation scripts, or finding a particularly lovely one in a book that I can use. Why outsource this joyful task?

And I continue to use AI at home for some tasks, it is great at helping me plan trips (where to park, nearest parks etc etc.) and has helped me navigate some medical issues recently, empowering me to advocate for myself in important ways. It definitely has its place, so this is far from a rally cry against it (although I do often feel guilty when I use it - and am tending to turn to it less and less).

But I am not using it to create material (marketing, class plans, scripts, schedules etc.) and if that makes me old fashioned or behind the times, so be it. Yoga is thousands of years old and still remains fresh and has endless teachings to offer! I have so many yoga books and teachers I can glean rich knowledge from, and that is my preference.

Personally, I have to admit to being pessimistic about AI and what it means for our future. I don't want to listen to AI music, watch AI films or read AI literature. So I will cling on to 'the old ways' for as long as I can, and if this means you notice mistakes (big and small) I apologise in advance!

Much Love

Vicki x