Ever since Peter Mark Roget published the first thesaurus in 1852, writers have argued over its utility as a creative tool. Margaret Atwood recommends having one on-hand, Sylvia Plath named it as her desert island book, Stephen King said it belongs in the wastebasket.
Generative AI finds itself in a similar position. New solutions are sandwiched between societal pressure to do things faster, better, and in higher volumes, and real anxieties around preserving the integrity of humans’ creative processes. In my own experience with AI, it’s helped me be both more productive and more creatively attuned. Better yet, it’s helped me actually expand my skillset in the workplace.
AI tools necessitate curation. In the tech world we call this “human-in-the-loop,” or HITL. Every time I generate an output, I check the tool’s work for accuracy. I see what resonates and what needs reworking. And, ultimately, I weigh all these pieces against what will best help achieve my specific project’s goals.
In short, as a mid-level editor, gen AI is continually placing me in the role of a creative director.
This mode of interacting with AI — let’s call it “AI upskilling” — involves approaching gen AI tools as junior support while you step into more senior creative thinking. It isn’t about skipping rungs on the corporate ladder, or scrambling upwards as a machine eats the ones below you. It’s about giving up-and-coming talent the opportunity, scaffolding, and headspace to think at higher levels sooner.
Gen AI chatbots can’t replace quality manager training or the lived experience of giving and receiving feedback from someone thoughtful and eager to collaborate. We shouldn’t let our professional foundations crumble because technology can do some of the work, either. But until we’re ready to make career jumps, taking an “AI upskilling” approach can help those afraid of creative atrophy adapt forward by sharpening their ability to direct, guide, and grow in a changing environment.
Codeword partner Kyle Monson once pointed out that creatives’ value isn’t just in their ability to produce catchy copy or bold visuals. It’s the taste, judgement, and years of lived experience they bring to a brief. Copywriter Savarone Ammann argued something similar when he said: “Most writing — especially copywriting — isn’t writing at all. It’s thinking. Directed, absorbed, original thinking.”
Reframing the crux of creatives’ skills in this way — from technical ability to taste, and from execution to strategic thought — eases anxieties around our worth in an AI-forward workplace. But it goes a step further, too, introducing a new benefit to adopting the tech.
It helps us level up — literally.
With an intentional approach, AI can help professionals, particularly those earlier in their careers, accelerate their growth in a changing workplace by training them to think holistically about what they produce, sooner and with more regularity. It accelerates the step where creatives throw things against the wall to see what sticks and places them at the next critical junction — assessing how well the ideas actually hold up.
As gen AI solutions become more pervasive and impressive, it’s natural — even wise — for creatives to question how a growing reliance on the technology could impact their livelihoods. For me, that anxiety manifests here: The more I rely on a gen AI tool to write, brainstorm, or research something, the less I exercise those mental functions myself. At the sight of a blank page, I find my instincts turning away from a sort of self-emanating creative spark — which can prove fickle — and toward the constant churn of an at-the-ready chatbot.
Instead of waiting for fire to catch from the striking together of rocks, why not grab a lighter?
In the workplace, efficiency is rewarded. It can even be the breeding ground for innovation when directed at the right places. To continue our campsite metaphor, accessing a flame more quickly and with less effort means I have more energy and focus to cook my meal well — then hike, or whatever I actually went into nature to do. (I wouldn’t want someone to “optimize” my time on the trail, though.)
Adopting an “AI upskilling” approach infuses creatives’ AI use with purpose. It declares that taking advantage of the resources available to us — whether a thesaurus, chatbot, or whatever comes next — doesn’t have to mean we’re neglecting our imaginations or dulling our creative edge. Instead, it positions our use of these tools as a resourcefulness that facilitates how we navigate the evolving demands of our workplace.
Plus, what if AI tools didn’t chip away at our skills, but rather reinforced them? Think of the last time a chatbot truly impressed you. You probably noticed the mechanics of what it created, or at least took note of its strengths. That is, on some level, you learned from it.
Gen AI can be a tool, just like a thesaurus, that enriches how we show up in the workplace by getting us to the pieces of a creative puzzle faster and with more precision. We still have to put everything together — and that can be the most satisfying part.
This essay was written and edited by humans. Gemini 2.5 Pro helped us find some of the thesaurus facts.