The rise of AI in our daily workflows has created a fascinating paradox. AI may be making us better at evaluating ideas, while making us less comfortable creating them from scratch.
Before AI, a blank page forced us to do the heavy lifting. We had to build the logic, connect the dots, brainstorm, make mistakes, and eventually find our way to an answer. Today, AI can provide a baseline in seconds.
From creator to editor
Our role is slowly shifting from creator to editor.
- Instead of generating the first idea, we evaluate it.
- Instead of building the argument, we refine it.
- Instead of brainstorming from scratch, we filter what AI gives us.
And there’s a huge advantage to this. We are constantly challenged to assess AI outputs for accuracy, bias, relevance and nuance. We are learning to ask better questions and identify weak reasoning faster.
The muscles we stop using
But what happens to the cognitive muscles AI is doing the heavy lifting for?
- If AI structures our arguments, do we become worse at building logical frameworks ourselves?
- If AI connects the dots, do we slowly lose the habit of making unexpected connections?
- If the first draft is always one prompt away, do we become less comfortable with the messy process of creating from nothing?
AI is an incredible sparring partner. But a sparring partner is supposed to challenge you, not fight the entire match for you. Maybe the real challenge isn’t learning how to use AI better: it’s making sure we don’t forget how to think without it.
What do you think?
Are we becoming better thinkers with AI, or simply better editors of machine-generated thoughts?