It happened again at a networking event: the classic Chat GPT Deflect and Escape defensive move.

Business owner: “I’m a videographer.”

Me: “Well, if you need help with scripts, let me know.”

Business owner: “Oh, I use Chat GPT for that.”

Me: “Oh. OK.”

What I wish I’d said: “Oh. OK. How do you keep your scripts from sounding bland and generic?”

Had the artificial intelligence juggernaut killed a business prospect? Yes.

Should I pack up my laptop and go find another business not being taken over by A.I.? No.

First of all, very few businesses that would take me are not being taken over by A.I. Like the horror movie heroine who flees the monster by running to the basement or attic, I can run but I cannot escape A.I.

No one can.

But should we try?

The truth is that technology will eat everyone’s lunch if we don’t learn to harness it.

Construction firms face competition from companies building houses with 3D printers. (Yes, it’s true.)

Graphic designers have been losing business to DIY tools like Canva for years.

Video? All it takes is a well-worded prompt and voila! An app will create your video from images it finds on the internet or your friends’ shaky phone camera work.

And the DIY stuff will probably suck.

All technology needs a human component to direct it and give it the unique voice and style that can’t be replicated by a machine.

Not for a few more years, anyway. Until then, writers must stop worrying and learn to love A.I. and all it can do for them, while also learning how to turn it to our advantage.

I use it for brainstorming content ideas and organizing messy notes into a rough draft that I then refine by adding my voice or that of my client. I don’t always follow its draft, but having it makes me feel less overwhelmed and helps me to see the nuggets buried in the notes.

One of the top A.I. skills we need to master is the prompt, which is like a Google search taken to several powerful levels. The right prompt can yield the information you need and even write it in the style you need.

Here are some suggestions for prompting your app to give you the results you want:

• Be specific. Drill down to exactly what you want, from the word count to the detailed angle: Not “Write about vegan diets and why I should follow one” but “Write a 500-word blog post explaining vegan diets and giving the pros and cons of switching to one.”

• Add context: Who or you writing for? “Write a 500-word blog post explaining vegan diets and giving the pros and cons of switching to one, for college-educated adults 35-50 years old who read healthy dining websites.”

• Define the voice: “Write a 500-word blog post explaining vegan diets and giving the pros and cons of switching to one, for college-educated adults 35-50 years old who read healthy dining websites. Use simple words and a friendly tone.”

Don’t just cut and paste the results and send it off. A.I. doesn’t always get basic facts right, which is called “hallucinating” (a term I love). Check facts for accuracy and ideas for logic. I’m always wary of the possibility that the app has lifted some other writer’s verbatim, so an anti-plagiarism rewrite is a wise strategy.

Use A.I. as it was intended, and it may become one of your best writing tools — after your own creativity.

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