Is AI coming for your job? That’s the question echoing through boardrooms, sales floors, and WhatsApp groups alike. But let’s be honest: AI isn’t your biggest threat. Your mediocrity is. When ChatGPT launched, a wave of panic swept through the workplace everywhere. Sales was no exception. Reps started whispering about automation. Managers scrambled to attend webinars on “AI-proofing your career.” And yet, here we are—almost 3 years later and a plethora of artificial intelligence tools like Copilot, Google Gemini and Deepseek later—and sales are still being closed by people, not bots.
So, here’s the truth that most salespeople don’t want to confront: AI isn’t your biggest threat. Your mediocrity is.
Is AI coming for your job? AI can’t replace hunger
Sales will always reward hunger. AI can write a follow-up email. AI can summarize a customer’s complaint. AI can even predict buying patterns.
But it can’t walk into a room, read the mood, adjust its tone, and connect emotionally with a hesitant prospect. The salesperson who prepares better, listens more intently, follows up more consistently, and makes the customer feel seen—that person will always be in demand.
I’m assuming here that you are already using AI—and not just wallowing in panic, fuelled by mediocrity. Otherwise, you’re edging closer to irrelevance. You’re like the accountant who still clings to pen and paper, complaining, “Adding and subtracting takes too much time,” long after the calculator was invented. And when Microsoft Excel arrived—do you think that accountant still had a job? AI is coming for your job if you’re still selling like its 1999.
Your competition isn’t a robot—it’s the rep who’s doing the work
Let’s be honest:
Did you really lose the sale because the lead was cold… or because you didn’t follow up after the second call? And did the client go silent because they weren’t ready… or because your pitch was generic? AI isn’t the reason you didn’t hit target. Someone else outworked you. Someone else showed up earlier, asked sharper questions, and stayed present longer.
Use the tool—don’t let it use you
Now here’s the irony: The best salespeople embrace AI. And they are the sales people of tomorrow. They use it to draft proposals faster; write more professional emails. They automate routine follow-ups and chat with AI for solutions to sales challenges they are struggling with. For example, they use AI to prepare with insights before calls. To them AI is a tool to enhance efficiency – they free up more time to sell. Mediocre reps panic about AI. Great reps partner with it.
If you didn’t know ChatGPT can do all those sales related admin activities, then interrogate yourself for ongoing relevance in an AI world.
The real question isn’t whether AI is coming for your job—it’s whether you’re still qualified to keep it.
You’re not being replaced—you’re being revealed
Power and alcohol don’t change you-they just reveal the real you.
If AI makes anything obsolete, it’s lazy selling. The kind that relies on charm without preparation. The kind that shows up with excuses instead of insight. The rise of AI isn’t killing sales jobs—it’s exposing the ones who aren’t doing theirs well.
Point to ponder: Did you know that the internet disrupted the travel agency industry? Many agents in the West shutdown and those that survived continue to evolve. In Kenya (and Africa), however, nothing changed much. In fact, they’re increasing.And why? Because even with the conveniences the Internet offers we want (need?) to engage with a human being. We are still African; a communal people. A people to people, people.
Is AI coming for your job? The future of sales is human-led, tech-assisted
Customers are people. And People don’t want to be sold to by a robot. They want to be understood by a human. You. But that human must now be sharper, faster, and more customer-focused than ever before. Are you? So, no, AI isn’t coming for your job. But your performance record might be.
So. If AI isn’t the threat—are you ready to admit what is?
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