3 Reasons Why AI Can't Beat Human Intuition

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Two weeks ago, I spoke on a panel in a packed room in Louisville, Kentucky, at the Society of American Military Engineers (SAME) Joint Engineering Training Conference (JETC).

The conference brings together more than 2,000+ professionals across the architecture, engineering, construction, critical infrastructure, and joint-engineering community, from both the private and public sectors.

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Throughout the conference, the subject of AI was a hot topic. It ranked up there with seeking opportunities, partnership engagements, DOGE, market changes, policy changes, Return to Office, and networking.

Not just the subject of AI, but more specifically…how you are using and implementing AI.

How you stay relevant in the ever-changing landscape of AI is critical. There are certain aspects of what AI can support you with, and there are aspects of what you need to lead with.

We’re going to break down the importance in this issue so you can do the same on your end.

Let’s dance.

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AI Excitement Vs Reality

Throughout the conference, conversations with peers, Q&As during panel sessions, we heard many answers to what AI can help with, cost savings, enhanced efficiency, powerful prompts, and where it is going.

Our panel, with my two esteemed colleagues, discussed the impact that AI can have on helping business development and capture management win in growing your business.

We discussed AI, the current trends, how companies are adapting it, lessons learned, tools to use for business development and capture, and much more.

There are limits to what a digital tool can do. There are also aspects of any business development and company growth that need to have a strong human element to it.

AI is still rapidly developing, and we spend a significant amount of resources building relationships to win business, foster partnerships, joint ventures, and more. We need to look at how AI can make us as effective as possible.

A Change in Perspective

AI is coming in hot in so many industries. From sales tools, customer service, content creation, CRM support, AI agents, proposal development, the list goes on. And it's moving faster than most people are willing to admit.

AI is coming for my work as well.

Every person who uses AI has their own personal AI assistant, their own AI consultant, AI marketing manager, their AI whatever-they-want. Literally in your pocket, on the go, and on-demand (at a price of your choosing). And the options are endless.

You can tailor the AI tool to be a game-changer to their company for whatever the task at hand is that they need it for.

The professionals who fall behind won’t be the ones with outdated skills—they’ll be the ones who refused to adapt. And more specifically, they’ll be the ones who tried to compete with AI instead of leaning into the one thing that still sets humans apart: our ability to connect, build trust, and bring empathy into every conversation

Building Your Edge - The Human Side of It

During the panel session at SAME JETC, one question came up from someone in the audience asked “How does business development stay relevant with the advancement of AI?”

Solid question. And glad it was asked.

My response? Relationships will matter more now than ever before. Invest in them and make it a priority in your growth.

AI can streamline so many areas of your job, however, it cannot build real human relationships, read the room, make authentic introductions, read body language, laugh, smile, pivot the conversation from talking business to an off-topic that you might both share that you didn’t know you had (i.e., Skiing, cooking, fantasy football, etc.).

We are in the relationship business. Building relationships and making decisions are still made between people, not AI. Trust needs to be there. Right now, many people are trying to use AI to write faster, respond quicker, or appear more productive.

But here’s the truth: the most valuable work isn’t about speed. It’s about connection, understanding, and trust.

If You Don’t Know How They Buy, You’re Just Guessing 

So What Does This Mean for Me?

AI is here, and sooner or later (if not already), it is going to creep into your day-to-day work. Whether you run a team, are part of a team, or report up to a leader, it is important to consider how AI might impact you. Ask yourself a few of these questions below:

• What do I do each week that can be replaced by AI (be specific)

• What job functions do I have that are internally facing and what ones are externally facing (i.e., customer, policy, stakeholders, partners, etc)

• How many hours do I spend on routine tasks that I know an AI tool to replace me doing it?

  • Why haven’t you leveraged AI yet to save time?

Let’s look at the human side of it:

• What parts of your job require human interaction and engagement?

  • How much is internally focused vs externally focused?

• Where do you provide value to your team? To your clients? Are the relationships (both internally and externally) a two-way street?

• Why do your clients like to work with you? I mean really like to work with you

• If you asked your clients what would they say would be beneficial for a stronger human engagement?

So with AI moving full steam at the moment…what do I do?

Here’s a breakdown of how you can grow from a human standpoint:

I’m focusing on three core areas at the moment. In-person events and engagements, real-world experience, and professional associations.

In-Person Events

In-person events allow for the ability to build relationships that are more than just surface level, allowing for the opportunity to explore partnerships, referrals, connections, and knowledge sharing with others.

Relationships that take time to build. Some are quicker than others. Some provide the opportunity to develop business quickly. But the human element is what is critical for this to grow. Put the effort in.

Be the person they can count on when it matters, not just when you need something.

Leverage Your Expertise

AI has knowledge. You have wisdom and real-world experience.

And that’s a critical difference.

AI can summarize a report in seconds. But it can’t anticipate how a decision will affect a client’s long-term strategy. It can’t read a room when tension rises. It doesn’t know what it feels like to lose a major deal, learn from it, and come back stronger. That experience you’ve built over the years? It’s your bread and butter. Use it.

Volunteering with Professional Associations

Professional associations are a gold mine for not only opportunities, building trust, connections, and where AI just can’t hang.

I have written on this before here: The One Networking Secret Everyone Overlooks and 3 Strategies to Turn Tradeshow Conversations into Conversions 

Show your added value and grow your engagement through networking in your niche.

So volunteer! Say yes! Get out there and start helping out and doing whatever your professional organization needs support with. It’s a great and effective way to build your network

You don’t need to be a public speaker or run big events. What matters is that the people around you feel heard. Whether it’s a one-on-one client conversation or a Zoom call with your team, make the space feel safe for honesty. Real business moves at the speed of trust, and trust is built in the moments where people feel seen and respected.

What the Internet Taught Me This Week

From new tools, recent trends, and market updates, here is what has been on my mind.

1. AI outpaces a doctor’s 20+ years’ worth of experience…in seconds. Check it out here

2. Cybersecurity researcher Sean Heelan just found a critical zero-day vulnerability in OpenAI’s latest model. Check it out here

3. Fintech Klarna’s “Buy Now, Pay Later” model has been going downhill. Hard. Check it out here

You don’t need to become more robotic. You need to become more human.

Because in a world racing toward artificial intelligence, being real is your greatest advantage.

The future belongs to those who remember what can’t be automated: trust, connection, and the courage to lead with both. So while others chase the next shortcut, keep showing up as someone no one else can replace. That’s how you stay relevant. That’s how you win.

I’ll keep using AI with my work and growing my business. I’ll share my work, my prompts, and the latest AI tools that help me (to help you). I’ll be putting people first and building the human connection, I’m not about the shortcuts.

Just keep showing up as someone no one else can replace.

See you next week.

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