Why AI Will Make Us More Human, Not Less

Kirk McDonald: Let’s use the technology not to replace ourselves, not to replace our real value, but to move our value to the authenticity of it, the human part of it.

Jeanniey Walden: I’m here with Kirk McDonald. Kirk, thanks so much for coming on the show.

Kirk McDonald: Absolutely. Thank you. Really excited.

Jeanniey Walden: You are a busy man. Not just personally with all of the content you’ve been creating and the conversations here at Possible, but also as a business icon.

Kirk McDonald: Oh, wow. I got an icon label. That’s too much.

Jeanniey Walden: I’ve heard a lot around the event that people feel AI is creating a resurgence of humanity.

Kirk McDonald: Yes, and I’m excited if that’s what’s going to happen. This is a technology that processes information faster and relies heavily on pattern recognition to automate the parts that require just memory. And if you can now move your resources to the authenticity of connections, I think that’s a huge opportunity. Let’s use the technology not to replace ourselves, not to replace our real value, but to move our value to the authenticity of it, the human part. We’re a human connections platform, so you’ll hear that resonate in everything we do. We’re in a moment where that is going to matter more. And this role of curation, cutting through the noise, filtering out the distraction so we can spend more time on real connection, I think that matters a lot.

Jeanniey Walden: It’s fantastic to see people wanting to get together. How exciting must it be, in this relationship with AudiencePath, to get signals that are real-time and intent-based and focused on honesty, versus aggregated data that suggests something while you’re trying to interpret results and take a guess?

Kirk McDonald: You just nailed it. Our behavior is a revealed honesty about ourselves that you can’t always capture if you only look at my statistics, because my statistics don’t reveal as much as my behavior. It’s a very powerful signal. So for AudiencePath to allow us, in this partnership, and we feel fortunate about it, the thought was: what could we do? And it’s more than inventory extension. This is really about how I scale like-mindedness, how I scale interest and values, in a way that lets me bring a brand a more complete and robust solution.

Jeanniey Walden: If you were going to give a young, up-and-coming rockstar business person three pieces of career advice?

Kirk McDonald: Oh wow, that’s a big question. A career should be thought of in three stages. Early on, be someplace where you’re learning more than you’re giving, and don’t chase the money, chase the learning. Let your curiosity lead the first chapter. At some point you’ll be able to give more than you’re getting. At that point, transition and become a manager, and give away everything you’ve got, completely, because it won’t be relevant anyway, it’s changing too quickly. And then you get to a third chapter, which I feel fortunate to be in, where what I’m looking to do is get out of the way of those coming behind, because I confidently believe they’re smarter. If I can guide a little on my way, I think that’s fine. So to a younger person coming up: chase that curiosity, because if you’re learning, you’re in a great spot. When it’s time to give, give knowing you don’t have the answer yet, but give all of it. And then figure out the last chapter. I’m still figuring out chapter three. I’m a work in progress.

Jeanniey Walden: Work in progress. Thank you so much for being on the show.

Kirk McDonald: Thank you.

Jeanniey Walden: And that’s a wrap for today’s episode of Liftoff. I don’t know about you, but I am inspired. Follow us at Liftoff Show on every social channel, and make sure you catch our next episode.