AI is destroying my ability to concentrate
- AI is destroying my ability to come up with solutions myself
- AI is destroying my thinking
- AI is destroying me
Many title ideas, all of them correct. Nevertheless, I found the title that was ultimately used to be the most fitting, as I am increasingly noticing how my concentration is waning. It is sometimes really difficult for me to stay focused and concentrated for long periods of time. I am well aware that there may be many other reasons for this. Nevertheless, I blame AI for a lot of the “work simplification” it has brought about.
Slowly but surely, the non-AI gaps in the digital world are closing. Quite a few products advertise artificial intelligence that makes your life, or at least the respective tool, easier and better. But what is advertising? Advertising is what you are supposed to hear, not what you want to hear or what you actually need to hear. In the end, everyone lies shamelessly to your face, whether it's a real person you can touch or an AI you can click on. And both lie with such conviction that you have almost no choice but to believe exactly what you are told or to do what would really be intelligent: verify what you are told.
These convincing lies are a huge problem. I often catch myself quickly consulting AI instead of my brain. In many cases, my brain would already have the solution ready in some drawer. But it's not that simple; after all, the brain is primarily lazy. It is intent on saving energy. (More on this in the excellent book Thinking, Fast and Slow).) And that's where AI comes in handy. No wonder I reach for the chatbot as quickly as a smoker reaches for a cigarette. My brain seeks relief and doesn't care much whether what comes out in the end really makes sense. This sense can only be restored when I put my brain into overdrive to verify what you're told. Yes, I am deliberately repeating myself here.
So the smart one is the one who stays smart. Smart is the person who doesn't just accept everything they are told. No matter how convincing the source of the information may be.
I don't have a specific example, but whenever I notice that AI is telling me nonsense, I confront it. And what does it do? It confirms that I'm right, maybe even says “sorry,” and then serves me the next lie.
I have to admit that I'm a little unfair to these soulless bytes. Some of the things that AI spits out are quite useful, and I use them primarily as a kickstarter to then work with them myself, supplementing my knowledge and ultimately arriving at a good result. For me, AI is an excellent source of ideas and very useful for that purpose. And that's how AI should remain. I'm fighting vehemently for that at the moment. Because all too often I've taken things at face value, only to fall flat on my face. And worse still, this mindless acceptance of pseudo-wisdom has simply made my lazy brain even lazier. It doesn't feel like concentrating any more. No, it refuses until I force it to do so in an extreme way. And then I realize again and again how exhausting thinking actually is.
So I have to learn again – not necessarily just because of my use of AI – to concentrate on something for longer. To focus my energy on something specific and not let myself get distracted. Of course, distraction is also a major issue that ultimately affects concentration. It's one of many issues. And as already mentioned, it would be wrong to blame AI alone.
What do you take away from these non-AI-generated lines?
Feel free to use AI, why not? But don't treat what it presents to you lightly. Today's AI takes what is available to it, adds to it if necessary, and presents you with more or less bullshit on a silver platter, which it sells to you as a fragrant roast.
AI is good and getting better. But as of today, it is anything but perfect. Use it as inspiration, not for the end result. Use it to generate funny pictures and videos, but don't use it to trash the internet.
AI isn't bad per se. Maybe it's the future. But it's not the truth. Not today. If you keep that in mind, you'll be doing yourself, your brain, your concentration, your nerves, and maybe even your whole life a big favor.