J.C.'s mother was right: Spotify's algorithms could tell her what she liked, but only she could determine who she was. This distinction—between optimization and meaning—defines the human advantage in the AI age.
As machines get better at processing, predicting, and optimizing, human value migrates to meaning-making: Finding purpose in randomness, creating narrative from noise, building significance from data, crafting legacy from labor.
This isn't abstract philosophy—it's practical strategy. In a world where AI can do almost anything, the question becomes: What's worth doing? Only humans can answer. Only meaning-makers can lead.
The organizations thriving in 2024 aren't those with the best algorithms—they're those creating the most meaning. The professionals commanding premiums aren't those processing the most information—they're those transforming information into significance.
Your competitive advantage isn't in doing meaningful work. It's in making work meaningful. For yourself. For others. For the future.