I asked AI About Myself. The Results Were Startling!

Why would I want to ask AI about myself?

Trust me, I’m really not that narcissisistic. But I am curious.

Times have definitely changed quickly within the online space. Search Engine Optimization or SEO was once gold for online creators. Put in the proper keywords and learn the algorithm and you could be first on search engines like Google or Yahoo.

While SEO isn’t completely dead, it has been replaced at the top of the search engine output by an Artificial Intelligence or AI summary of the search term. Essentially, what you search for is what is now known as an AI prompt. The output isn’t always fantastic but it usually is fairly accurate with links on the side to show where the sources of the output came from.

The good news is if you still want those top blogs and creator sites, they are still there, you just have to scroll down a bit further to see them.

What is clear is that if you want to hold some of the top real estate on the web, you will need to optimize for AI. When building a brand, such as the Human Constant, it is important to first be unique, and second to find your niche. 

That’s why this week I decided to search for myself and the Human Constant online to see what AI had to say. This is a good way to see how my messaging is coming across and what the potential is to build a brand around the Human Constant.

Now first things first. My name is pretty common and judging by the other Ryan Ellis’ out there, the 1980’s was a peak time to be named Ryan Ellis. So I can’t just start by prompting AI “Who is Ryan Ellis?” 

Among others, there is a NASCAR driver, a singer, and an NHL Hockey player. As much as I would love to play in the league, and did masquerade as a defenseman in a Raleigh beer league, I don’t quite have the skill level to play. Even though we are both 5’10” 180 lbs (ish) I have a feeling that the muscle mass numbers don’t quite line up.

So I decided to prompt Google’s built in AI (Gemini I believe) with the following question and what follows between the lines are the copy and pasted results. The accuracy of the answer was pretty startling at first.

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Who is Ryan Ellis of humanconstant.com?

Ryan Ellis is a Science and Operations Officer at the National Weather Service in Morehead City, North Carolina, where he helps manage a team of forecasters. In this role, he focuses on ensuring the team has the necessary technology, skills, and training for optimal performance.

Beyond his NWS work, Ellis is the founder of humanconstant.com, a platform where he writes about leadership and productivity. He believes that while skills, abilities, work ethic, and work environment are essential for success, human skills act as a crucial multiplier in this equation.

He also shares his expertise by teaching Synoptic Meteorology as an adjunct instructor at East Carolina University since 2023.

His work at humanconstant.com focuses on the idea of the “Human Constant”, which he describes as a powerful force multiplier that can significantly impact success, both positively and negatively. This concept applies to various aspects of life, including:

• Self-interaction: How individuals engage with themselves.
• Relationship development: How individuals build connections with others.
• Teamwork and leadership: How individuals collaborate within teams and lead them.
• Influence and advocacy: How individuals promote their ideas and influence others.

Ellis stresses that the Human Constant transcends professional life and impacts all areas where human beings are involved. He advocates for mastering these concepts to unlock full potential, according to humanconstant.com.

His content on humanconstant.com touches on various topics, including:

• Emotional intelligence
• Productivity optimization
• Logistics
• Job interview strategies
• Generational differences in the workplace
• The importance of travel and vacation
• Accountability partnerships
• Habit transformation for fulfillment
• Navigating the challenges of “hustle culture”

Through humanconstant.com, Ellis aims to provide insights and tools for individuals and teams to enhance their leadership skills, improve productivity, and ultimately achieve greater fulfillment and success in their personal and professional lives.

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Where Did the Results Come From?

I was a little shocked that AI was easily able to link me not only to the Human Constant, but to my day job as a meteorologist for the National Weather Service. Links on the output show that the vast majority of the output came from the humanconstant.com, my Linked In page, and other places where I have had an online presence in the past such as the American Meteorological Society and other meteorology related sites. 

Not once did it mix in any of the other Ryan Ellis imposters out there. Pretty impressive but not that surprising given how far AI has come in such a short time.

What Did I learn From the Output?

The first thing that stood out to me about the output was that I have done a fairly good job with talking about the things on the Human Constant that I want to message and advocate for. If someone asked me what the site is about, this AI summary is not a bad start at all, particularly the bullet points.

The first four bullet points really outline my view of the strategy behind the human constant. If we want to level-up our human skills (stop calling them “soft skills” please), we need to start by looking inward at ourselves. 

Once we understand ourselves, we are equipped to start working with others one on one. Master that, we can start working in groups or teams, followed by leading groups and teams, and finally influence large numbers of people with our ideas. Those initial bullet points are pretty spot on.

I also learned that I have a lot of work to do if I want to truly niche down to something within the wide breadth of the Human Constant. Others are out there solving very specific problems for people, while the knowledge presented here is more general and wide reaching.

When we talk about well-roundedness when it comes to hiring, if someone has a specific need and they receive two applications, one showcasing a well rounded individual and one who is the “go-to guy” for that particular problem, who are they going to hire? All else being equal, the go-to guy. So I definitely have some work to do when it comes to figuring out the true identity of the site and that will come with time.

What Follow Up Questions Could I Ask AI?

AI isn’t a one and done. Part of the art of using it correctly is to ask it follow up questions based on the output it gives you. This will help the system hone its answers to produce the exact output that you are digging for. Unlike a search engine, you can think of it as “having a conversation” with AI. It remembers what you just said and builds on it.

The next three were follow up questions to my original prompt and the answers are between the lines.

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Who talks about the human constant?

The term “The Human Constant” refers to the platform and newsletter created by Ryan Ellis, a meteorologist and founder focused on human dynamics, leadership, and management skills. He discusses how understanding and utilizing the commonalities among people is crucial for achieving success in both professional and personal lives. 

What is The Human Constant?

• It is a concept presented by Ryan Ellis that emphasizes the importance of human interaction and dynamics in achieving success.
• Ellis uses this concept to highlight that while physical science and technical skills are important, the human elements—how people interact and work together—are often overlooked but essential for navigating challenges.

Who is Ryan Ellis?

• Ryan Ellis is a meteorologist and founder of HumanConstant.com.
• He is a speaker and writer who focuses on fulfillment, leadership, and management.
• He runs the “The Human Constant” newsletter and website, publishing articles on topics like leadership and communication.

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What do the Follow up Questions Tell us?

The first follow up question is a good sign that the Human Constant exists in its own space. That is great news for branding. There aren’t a million people out there talking about the human constant (yet!). Put in a corporate buzzword like “Emotional Intelligence” which was clearly coined by Daniel Goldman and you get a billion links talking about emotional intelligence.

So that is fantastic. As the Human Constant grows, it has it’s own little corner of the web to do so. The closest adjacent term I can find using AI is “The Human Condition” which is not exactly what we are talking about on this site.

The follow up of “What is the Human Constant?” gives us a nice summary of the site linking back to it which is exactly what we want to see.

Finally, because I initially prompted AI with “Who is Ryan Ellis of humanconstant.com?” It now knows which Ryan Ellis we are talking about. So when I now prompt it with “Who is Ryan Ellis?” I get the meteorologist, the founder of HumanConstant.com, a speaker and a writer, and not the race car driver or the hockey player.

The ability of AI to engage in the context of the current conversation makes prompting so much more powerful than the traditional search engine. 

Why Does This Matter?

As I often say, people just want to be heard. Being heard in the online space is harder and harder to do. While AI can be intimidating it can be an extremely powerful tool. Whether we like it or not, we as humans are going to have to co-exist with it. Once again, we can either get on board the train, or be run over by it. The earlier we punch our ticket for the ride, the more we can benefit from it. 

All this being said, AI and algorithms can change the digital world but AI cannot rewire the fundamental makeup of the human brain. That is precisely why human skills and the Human Constant are so fundamentally important for both survival and success.

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