Autofocus is a miracle and I would not want to give it up for paid work. But for my own pictures I have gone back to focusing by hand.
It is slower. I miss some moments. But the act of turning the ring makes me decide what the picture is about before I take it.
Choosing a subject
You cannot focus on everything. Manual focus makes that choice physical: this face, this hand, this leaf, and nothing else.
Somewhere in that small decision is most of what makes a photograph yours.