Bridging Millennia: How Stoic Virtues and AI are Shaping Future Careers

In an era dominated by rapid technological advances, particularly in Artificial Intelligence (AI), the role of humans is evolving. Drawing wisdom from ancient practices like Stoicism, Buddhism, and Jungian psychology, we can expand the use of personas as a solution to navigate these changes more effectively.

This article explores how these age-old strategies can be harnessed to shape career paths and business practices in the contemporary workplace.

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The Ancient Roots of Personas

Centuries ago, Stoics like Marcus Aurelius used to embody the ideal self, or the Stoic sage, as a key practice that guides adherents through decision-making and personal transformation. Similarly, Buddhist practices use embodying the Bodhisattva as ideal, teaching us the value of compassion and mindfulness. Carl Jung introduced the concept of psychological archetypes, encouraging a deeper understanding of the self and others, a practice that can lead to more effective teamwork and leadership in modern organizations.

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Transitioning Through Time

As we journey through history, these foundational ideas have evolved but their core principles remain vital. In today's business environment, where AI and automation are reshaping roles, the application of personas enables a deeper understanding of how human qualities can complement technological capabilities. For example, a persona embodying adaptability and lifelong learning could guide training programs and development tracks in organizations, making them more relevant in an AI-driven workplace.

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Personas in the Workplace

Imagine a future where career paths are not strictly defined by job titles but by the personas that we choose to adopt. Looking at LinkedIn profiles now, this future is already in play: more and more job titles are being replaced by personal impact and purpose persona statements. These persona projections help already individuals navigate careers that merge the old and the new, that are dynamic and flexible.

Are you thinking to change your LinkedIn profile too? Do you see this shift in your space of work?

Practical Application and Business Impact

Building a symbiotic relationship with new developments, is how personas concept found so many applications across millennia.

Businesses already successfully use personas in customer experience, marketing, UI/UX design. The new opportunity lies now in persona-driven career paths by identifying key traits that will harmonize with AI technologies in the future.

Training programs are being customized to cultivate these personas, focusing on developing human skills and technical know-how. Moreover, leadership development will benefit from this approach by preparing them to manage teams that include both human employees and AI systems.

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Let’s look deeper at personas use

Where do we use personas in self-development practices already?

Stoicism: In Stoicism, embodying the ideal self—or the Stoic sage—is a key practice that guides adherents through decision-making and personal transformation. This concept involves aspiring to live according to virtue and reason, the highest values in Stoic philosophy.

The practice of envisioning oneself as a Stoic sage serves as a continuous role model. This mental model of an ideal self acts as a constant reminder and benchmark for personal conduct, helping to quickly identify and correct deviations from Stoic principles.

Buddhism: In Buddhism, the concept of an ideal self or a desired state of being is closely linked to the notion of the Bodhisattva. A Bodhisattva is someone who seeks enlightenment not only for themselves but also for the benefit of all sentient beings. This concept aligns with the idea of embodying an ideal version of oneself to guide decisions and foster transformation.

Christianity (Imitatio Christi): Encourages followers to model their lives on Jesus Christ, embodying virtues such as humility and love to make ethical decisions and foster personal growth.

Energy In energy work, embodying a future self is often used for raising one's vibrational frequency to match that of the desired future.

Visualization & Manifestation: Utilizes the technique of embodying a future self to align one’s current state with future goals, enhancing motivation and emotional alignment for personal growth.

Psychology through Carl Jung’s Archetypes: Jung's theory presents the persona as a social mask individuals wear, affecting personal development and interactions.

Psychological Alignment: Psychologically, embodying a future self helps to bridge the gap between current reality and future aspirations. It can enhance motivation and clarify the steps needed to achieve specific outcomes. Practitioners often engage in regular reflection to maintain focus on their goals and to integrate their future aspirations with their current identity.

Emotional and Cognitive Reinforcement: The practice also involves reinforcing positive emotions and beliefs that support the future self, while identifying and transforming negative patterns that might hinder progress. This aspect integrates cognitive-behavioral techniques with spiritual practices, aiming to create a holistic approach to personal development.

Intentional Living and Spiritual Growth: Embodying a future self often carries a spiritual dimension where individuals see this practice not just as a means to an end but as part of a broader journey of spiritual growth and self-discovery. It encourages living more intentionally, aligning daily actions with deeper values and long-term visions.

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Where do we see successful use of personas in business already?

User Experience (UX) and Interaction Design

In UX design, personas are crafted based on research to represent different user types. This helps designers create more effective and targeted products by understanding the needs, behaviors, and goals of their users.

Personas in UX not only guide product design but also facilitate communication and consensus within teams, making complex design tasks more manageable and focused.

Marketing and Customer Experience

Marketing utilizes personas to tailor communication and product strategies to different segments of the market, enhancing customer engagement and satisfaction. These personas are often based on extensive market research and can influence both marketing strategies and product development.

Education and Learning

Educational professionals use personas to design learner-centric experiences that align with the diverse needs, motivations, and backgrounds of students. This approach helps in creating educational content and strategies that are more engaging and effective.

Digital Media and Entertainment

In media, personas can influence content creation and presentation by reflecting the preferences and behaviors of different audience segments, thus optimizing engagement and interaction.

Business Strategy and Organizational Development

Companies use personas to better understand their customer base, aligning their services and products with the needs and expectations of different user groups. This strategic use of personas can lead to more effective business practices and customer interactions.

Leadership development

All leadership development is in fact a persona modelling, of the ideal leader.

We have a notable opportunity: to use personas in designing the future of work.

5 Personas

For Procurement we have identified 5 Personas of the future: the Strategist, the Optimizer, the Architect, the Disruptor and the Catalyst. By adopting and adapting these ancient strategies, we are creating now a workforce future that is not only capable of working alongside AI but thrive in it.

5 Personas is modelling the procurement roles of the future. It guides the industry with strategies that amplify our best selves at work, enable the workforce allocation towards the right opportunities and maximize our collective and individual positive impact.

Join the evolution. Bring personas of the future to your org now.

Everything Starts With A Human.

Stay amazing, be Solutionary!

Andra