Have you watched The Devil Wears Prada 2? For those who haven’t, this movie subtly exposes a key problem that creators face nowadays: the existence of voice in times of AI.
In fact, the movie gives us a glimpse of what writing and publishing have become in our days. More than that, it gives us a shocking and brutal truth. In the words of Nigel, the character played by Stanley Tucci, Runway magazine has become something people scroll through while they are on the toilet.
The Uncomfortable Answer
Here is the fact: there is so much content available that people simply don’t pay attention. And even if they do, they don’t really read it, unless they are in the toilet.
Especially after AI, the question I struggled with for many months was this: what makes people pay attention? Can we still be paid attention to anymore? And if we can, then how? How can we make voice be heard in times of AI?
In the middle of my struggle, there was an inner voice giving me a way out. And I understood that the answer to these questions was scary. It was completely unexplored ground for me. And it screamed in my head.
But among those screams, I also saw an opportunity that was exciting. I heard in it a call to myself: to put myself out there like no one was watching.
Wait! This meant something.
I have published my stories, and for those who have read at least one of my books, you already know those stories are not easily digested. But using my very self to develop my voice was something I hadn’t done before. Yet, this was the pathway before me. If I wanted to continue writing, the voice was telling me to do it wholly and wholeheartedly.
Why It Matters to Have Genuine Voice in Times of AI
In times of AI, creating content has become easier than ever. Text can be generated. Ideas can be structured. Sentences can be polished. Articles can be produced in seconds. But this also means that there is more content than ever before. So the real question is no longer only: can you produce something? The real question is: can someone feel you in it?
That is why true voice in times of AI matters so much. Your voice is what makes your writing, your art, your speech or your work recognizable. It is the part that cannot be reduced to a prompt, a formula or a template. AI can help you produce. But it cannot replace the part of you that wants to communicate something real.
How to Discover Your Voice in times of AI?
Here are three exercises that will help you discover your true voice in times of AI. My advice is to follow them in order.
Exercise 1: Start Using Your Voice
The easiest way to discover your voice is to simply start using it.
It doesn’t matter if you are an artist or not. If you want to discover your voice, you have to start using it. For writers, start telling your stories like no one is reading them. Singers, sing your songs like no one is listening. Drawers, start drawing like no one is ever going to see it.
The point of this initial exercise is to understand what is inside of you that wants to be communicated. Because one thing is true: whether you realize it or not, if you want to discover your voice, there is something you are trying to communicate.
You just don’t know what it is yet!
Exercise 2: Exaggerate The Movements of Your Voice
In times of AI, discovering your voice may be a slow process, especially if you are still trying to figure out what to say. But here is an exercise you can use to accelerate this process.
If you want to discover your voice in times of AI, start exaggerating your movements while using your voice. By movements, I mean everything that is mechanical and that is put into motion when you use your voice.
As an example, for an actor, the movements to exaggerate are their body expressions. For a singer, it is the voice itself. For a writer, it is the movements your words create in the reader’s imagination. And for public speakers, those movements are also the ones they create while on stage.
The point of this exercise is to go wild with your movements in order to expose the edges of your voice.
It doesn’t matter what is too much. It doesn’t matter what is not beautiful. At this point in the practice, we want you to be as raw as possible. You can work on the excesses afterwards. It doesn’t matter. Just expose the edges of your voice.
By doing this, you will force your voice outside, and something amazing will happen: your voice will start being shaped as soon as it lands outside of you.
Exercise 3: Shape Your Voice
As I said in my article The Invisible Spectrum of Voice, voice is a superpower. And in order to be able to create beautiful things, you have to shape it.
After putting your voice out there and extrapolating it, it is time to refine it so it can accomplish the most beautiful things it is capable of. It is time to shape it.
The way I see it, there are two ways of shaping your voice. First: through experience. Second: through meditation. Both will help you shape your voice. But the difference is this: which method do you want or need in order to refine your voice?
As a first exercise, I would say: use your voice and shape it through experience. Remain open to critique, even if it hurts. Stay focused on how that critique can help you grow the power within your voice.
A power you need especially in times of AI.
Final Thought: Your Voice in Times of AI
Rediscovering your voice in times of AI is not about refusing technology. It is not about pretending AI does not exist. It is about remembering that tools can help you express something, but they cannot decide what inside of you is worth expressing.
Your voice begins where imitation stops. It begins when you stop trying to sound like everyone else. It begins when you dare to put something personal, honest and alive into what you create.
That voice echoing in my head while watching the new Devil Wears Prada was right! In order for your voice to be heard, you have to do it wholly and wholeheartedly.
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