You know it when you see it. Traditionally this line is associated with obscenity, based on the 1964 Supreme Court case, Jacobellis v. Ohio. Justice Potter Stewart wrote in his opinion, “But I know it when I see it….”

This line also applies to professionalism. For example, many of my clients and other people I interact with compliment me on my professionalism. When I ask for the particulars of what they appreciate, they generally mention some basic behaviors, such as: Showing up on time. Being enjoyable to work with. Living up to your word. Getting things done with ease. Being respectful. Following through.

These behaviors are not exactly the high level ones needed for complicated endeavors requiring expertise. So what is professionalism these days, considering the degree to which many humans partner with AI?

First, we need to acknowledge that those “seeing” and experiencing the professionalism have a say in the definition. After all, they know what expertise they want. Nonetheless, these five human attributes are especially valuable today, especially in this AI age:

1. Attention
2. Respect
3. Ease
4. Initiative
5. Follow up

These are core interpersonal skills and tasks that we humans do. AI can’t yet fully replicate them on their own, although many of the AI chatbots I work with do their best to try.

AI can certainly help us humans be more professional in delivering tasks more quickly, thoroughly, and hopefully accurately too. (By the way, I asked the AI platforms Gemini to check my list of attributes and NILES to review the content I wrote.)

As for the particulars of these five attributes, here are my definitions for each:

1. Attention. Focusing on other individuals, noticing their situation, understanding the context and listening carefully and deeply. Listening well helps people feel seen and valued, and makes them feel less threatened. Listening deeply also helps you think more critically, including questioning what you don’t understand.

It also helps to pay attention to discern what’s unique. And also mull over what’s not being said or shared and what could be emerging.

2. Respect. Recognizing and acknowledging the humanness of others. Accepting people for who they are and not expecting them to act like you, others you know or have encountered. Being kind, fair, and honest as well as ethical. When individuals feel respected, their brain activates “a reward state” feeling, which is foundational to feeling psychologically safe, connected to others, and working effectively.

Yet, you still need to think critically, including listening to your gut. If you feel that something’s not working, honor it. You don’t want to put anyone’s brain into a “fear” state; but you need to be straightforward. Ask if they’re willing to hear about other approaches. Mutual respect is foundational for building trust.  

3. Ease. Being easy to work with, including treating others as they want to be treated, a la the platinum rule. To do this well, practice empathy as well as strong communication skills, including being clear. Also be prepared to translate new and complex information into understandable info and make clear, compelling calls to action.

You also will benefit by developing other soft skills, such as emotional intelligence, continuous learning, and agility and adaptability. The latter two are helpful for dealing with change, uncertainty, and disruption.  Also, try to do all of these actions with a pleasant demeanor. When people perceive you as friendly, warm, and welcoming, they’ll be able to think more clearly, collaborate more openly, and perform better.

4. Initiative. Anticipating key issues to address, rather than waiting to be asked. For example, this involves speaking up, taking action and even solving problems without being asked. You want to make sense of your experiences, including spotting opportunities and starting to act even without complete information.

5. Follow up. Taking instructions and meeting timelines. Correcting course as needed. Owning outcomes. Individuals who follow up are reliable and can be counted on to get things done. Granted, follow up can be hard to do, especially if expectations aren’t clear. (Someone can quickly say, “I’ll do that” and then forget about their commitment. Another challenge: Someone interprets an ambiguous remark as a promise to act, which wasn’t the intent of the individual speaking.)

Professionalism and AI

If you consider yourself a consummate professional and therefore are serious about providing value to others, you need to stay involved. In other words, you can’t outsource to AI or another person without telling the individuals you’re working with about your plan of action.

Call me traditional, but real professionals stay in the game and strive to avoid dropping the ball. You can’t call and run plays from the sidelines. You’ve got to get off the bench and into the action if you want to build and maintain your reputation.

So how does AI fit into this? Acknowledge what AI does well, such as analyzing data, researching and scaling. This means using AI to boost your capacity and capability while ensuring that you’re being attentive to other humans and their tasks and requests. As the human, you need to control quality, confirm progress, and oversee delivery.

In sum

What’s the answer to the question in the headline: Do humans need a boost from AI to be true professionals these days?

Yes, as long as we’re using AI to boost, not replace, us. As the AI platform NILES explained, humans benefit from an AI “thinking partner,” not an “answer vending machine.”

We humans are social creatures, and enjoy working with other humans we know, like, and trust. Consummate professionals play into this by leveraging their individuality, including their distinctive personal style and interests. This makes us more memorable, effective, and fun to work with – as long as we’re doing the five other key things.

Pay attention, be respectful, work with ease, take the initiative, and follow up.