AI vs AI - Which Channel are you Tuning Into?

The rising use of artificial intelligence (AI) in everyday life evokes a range of emotions and beliefs. Will AI ultimately be more helpful or harmful to society? Can I trust the chatbot giving me health advice? Is my iPhone capturing my every move, sound, and action…and is it reporting this information to a ‘big brother’ in the ether?

While I believe these are important questions, I also wish there were more chatter about another kind of AI: Appreciative Inquiry. Appreciative Inquiry is a human-centric approach focusing on positive aspects and strengths. First developed for use in organizational settings by David Cooperrider and colleagues at Case Western University in the late 1980’s, the Appreciative Inquiry model and principles are now used by coaches, like me, who seek to help clients access and better use their innate intelligence.  

While artificial and innate intelligence overlap (artificial intelligence has human intellect as its source of origin), they differentiate in terms of how and when their use optimizes human development. If I’m looking for information about intellectual aspects of rational health advise, I might access artificial intelligence with query along the lines of “latest research on intermittent fasting” or “best training plan for increasing cardiovascular health”. I would likely find advice that I could rather easily fact-check for its quality. But I doubt that information would get to the root of why I might not be taking care of myself as well as I know, at some level, I should be.

To access that type of intelligence — the one I call ‘innate wisdom’ — Appreciative Inquiry is far more helpful. The Dali Lama often describes the need to ‘take care of your own inner weather’, and the importance of compassion, altruism, and (innate) wisdom.

Appreciative Inquiry is a step-by-step approach. While implementing its principles in daily life requires the kind of awareness and intentionality most effectively gained through work with a skilled coach, I share them here to help you start exploring your possibilities.

The six principles of Appreciative Inquiry (listed in ‘upward rising order’; think of number 1 as the base of a pyramid, and 6 as the tip):

1.     Positive attention in the present affects our intentions for the future.

2.     Positive anticipation of the future helps us clarify an optimal vision.

“Vision becomes a power, not a place.”

3.     Positive questions and reflections are instigators of positive change.

4.     Positive energy and emotions stem from positive conversations and interactions

“Words create worlds.”

5.     Wholeness evokes trust. Wholeness is revealed in the whole story.

6.     Positive actions and outcomes stem from positive energy and emotions.

One question to keep in mind as you consider decisions in your life is: “What channel am I tuning into?” Do you need a list of facts? If so, starting with artificial intelligence might be helpful. However, if your questions tap into how to live more purposefully, feel more energized while being productive, feel happier or more fulfilled, or have more meaningful relationships, then Appreciative Inquiry is far more useful.

Interested in learning more? Email (colleen@wellbeingwv.com) and let me know if you would like to be part of a group coaching session. The upcoming workshop series will use Appreciative Inquiry to help you identify guiding values, craft a vision, and put steps into action for what is most important to you.