The other day, I was scrolling through social media, and my For You Page was packed with videos of Yetis, Bigfoots, and other mystical creatures. And listen, they were downright hilarious – engaging, creative, and clever in their storytelling. In the comments, someone asked, “Is this AI?” And that’s when the unseriousness kicked in, because behind that question was really, “Did you record this with your phone?” I know, sounds ridiculous. And yet…

Last year, one of my friends on Facebook went nuts over these gorgeous, vibrant blue hostas. She wanted to know where she could get a start. Turns out, they weren’t real. It was an AI-generated image that had gone viral. And to be fair, those hostas looked amazing. But that’s the point.

Now, to be clear, AI didn’t just create that image out of nowhere. Someone used AI to generate it. Same with the Bigfoot, Sasquatch, and Yeti videos. A person gave the prompt, chose the style, and published the content. AI didn’t act alone – it’s a tool. But it’s a tool being used to blur the line between reality and fiction in ways that we may not be prepared to process.

And here’s the part that makes me uneasy. Did you know that a recent analysis found over 40% of posts on Facebook are likely AI-generated? Not written by a person. Not shared from a memory or lived experience. But generated by a tool, prompted by someone, and fed into your experience without much context. And the more you click, the more of it you’ll see. 

The algorithms aren’t neutral. They’re trained to keep you scrolling, reacting, and engaging. That’s how the platform makes money. That’s content strategy. These platforms are optimized for engagement – not truth – and AI just makes the process faster, cheaper, and more convincing.

That’s the part I want to name. Not the technology. Not the content. But the consequences – especially for people trying to lead, build, or serve others in a world where truth has become a moving target.

Now, we’ve got folks selling prompt kits (only $17.99) to create and monetize AI generated videos. Think about that. I’m all for the funny, useful, and creative. But when the intent is to manipulate? I hope I’m – and you are – savvy enough to recognize it. Or at least pause long enough to question it. 

And please don’t misunderstand, I’m not knocking creativity, it’s beyond impressive what people can do. But we also have to be honest about our internal knowing and acquisition of information literacy skills. 

Most people I know care about making thoughtful decisions. They want to be informed. But the speed and sophistication of content creation today makes it incredibly difficult to know what’s real and what’s manufactured. And can we just say it’s exhausting to fact-check everything?

But this is where it gets personal. Because if you’re an entrepreneur, your voice, your story, and your credibility are your currency. If you don’t have a clear sense of what you’re responding to, what you’re aligning with, or what’s shaping your worldview, it changes you – on the inside – and thus it is outwardly expressed in your business as it’s impossible to separate the leadership from the leader. 

So no, this isn’t a post about hating AI. I use AI tools every day. I’m using one right now to draft this. The difference is, I’m choosing how to use it. I’m not handing over my thinking or my voice.

And that’s the point I want to make. As this tech evolves – and it will, rapidly – we need to evolve too. That doesn’t mean running faster to keep up or learning more tools. It means learning how to pause. How to check in with ourselves. How to spot when something is being designed to stir us up or shut us down. And how to recognize our own role in choosing what to believe, what to share, and what to act on.

I am not trying to make all y’all paranoid. Instead, I’m inviting you to build your discernment muscle. And that starts by asking the question – genuinely, curiously, and without sarcasm – Did AI make this? 

Because behind that question is another one. What is the impact of it? 

#FlyAboveSoarBeyond