Finding Our Way with AI
So here we are, the spring of 2026, and a life-changing technological revolution has begun.It’s clear that AI will be integrated into almost every aspect of our existence. PowHERful is, of course, paying attention.
An astoundingly useful tool to make our lives easier and address the most complex problems more efficiently, AI can already do much of what we can. Are we going to find ourselves outperformed and jobless?
Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, an AI company founded to develop systems that are safe and ethical, believes we’ll be experiencing displacement of up to 50% of entry-level white-collar jobs within 5 years, with a potential spike in U.S. unemployment to 10–20%. [1] He warns of an “unusually painful” disruption that has the potential of creating a permanent underclass of unemployed or low-wage workers. [2]
However, AI comes up short—and humans perform best—whenever emotional intelligence, interpretation, sense-making, and creativity are in play. And AI cannot replace judgment. Knowing where to apply AI, and where not to, is fast becoming a critical leadership skill.
To get a sense of how a PowHERful scholar might be using AI, we checked in with Tameka Thelisnort. She says she’s been finding AI useful at her current job, in researching graduate schools, and in day-to-day life as well.
Tameka is currently a participant in an executive leadership program with Carter’s, a large children’s apparel brand. Working within warehouse operations, she is helping streamline processes to improve workflows, documentation, and training, so things run more efficiently. “AI is something regularly integrated at our warehouse and encouraged by management. I personally use it for sending out emails and completing mini projects around the warehouse. To help revamp the Executive Leadership Program, I’m documenting my work process, then using ChatGPT to create a standardized document from my notes for all of our education programs. There are times, however, when AI doesn’t understand what I’m asking it to do. For example, I was attempting to build a rotation schedule—a timeline visual, a chart—to show when program participants are to switch departments. AI was not understanding my prompts, so I went ahead and built the chart myself, from scratch.”
She says, “In the workplace, I’ll use AI to get my brain flowing and feel inspired about ideas, but I would never directly take an idea from what Chat or Gemini offers up. But once I’ve developed an idea from my research, one I can build out and feel proud of as my own, I’ll work with AI to help finesse it.”
In addition to finding it an aid at work, Tameka has used AI to research graduate schools. “AI has been extremely helpful for looking into graduate programs. It’s been able to answer a lot of my questions: Which graduate programs would you recommend based on my goals? How long is this particular program? What are the requirements? The fees? AI has compiled for me a detailed list of schools that meet my criteria, making it easier for me to apply. While most online masters programs appear to be flexible, I do want to make sure I attend an accredited school, have opportunities to network with peers, receive a mentor and/or partner with alumni, and make connections with companies I’d be interested in working for in the future. Putting all of these desires into AI saves me the time of setting up multiple 10-15 minute meetings with admissions officers, only to discover that their program isn’t what I’m looking for.”
When it comes to application essays, Tameka says, “I like to use AI as little as possible — and that goes for writing in general — because I believe it genuinely takes away from the authenticity of a piece. In my application essays, I’ll fully write out my drafts, then use AI to incorporate information about the school’s program, and finally have it fix any issues with grammar and vocabulary. I do think it’s important that an individual uses their own writing, that AI is used sparingly at best, so the work is as original as it can be, with an authentic voice.
Anthropic’s Amodei would agree: he cautions against students using AI as a quick fix or shortcut, as this “de-skills,” preventing the development of the very skills that will be needed to oversee AI in the future. Amodei believes that the "final frontier" for humans will be tasks involving interpersonal relating and complex judgment. [3]
Tameka has also made good use of AI outside of work and study. “I recently went on a trip to New York with some friends, and used AI to help figure out pricing for excursions and build my itinerary. We wanted to visit all of these attractions we saw online, but weren’t familiar with the NYC boroughs or how far everything was from each other. After making a list of everything we wanted to do, I asked ChatGPT to take that list and organize it day by day to ensure our activities were near each other for that day, to avoid the hassle of jumping back and forth across the state. It was a great help in making our booking times and visiting certain shops and restaurants before closing. It truly made our trip amazing.”
PowHERful will focus in a future newsletter on individual strategies and practical, tactical moves for education and potential careers to help direct you towards success in our new, accelerating AI environment. We are all in this together!
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