AI Made My Work Faster — My Thinking Narrower

Initially, the author experienced a surge in productivity due to AI's speed and efficiency in generating drafts and analysis. However, a crucial trade-off emerged as the speed compressed not just time, but also the space for comprehensive thinking. The author noticed a shift where thinking previously distributed throughout the process, like exploring while drafting, shrunk to the edges. This change meant early framing became overly important and felt final too soon, potentially locking in directions without proper exploration. The author found that AI favored a single, efficient path, leading to a focus on depth rather than a broader consideration of possibilities. This focus on speed and answers over inquiry narrowed the author’s thinking, especially in familiar tasks. The ideas produced in this environment lacked resilience, bending easily when challenged. To remedy this, the author consciously slowed down certain processes, especially before committing to a frame and when feeling overly safe. These interruptions, like asking "what's missing," reintroduced breadth without sacrificing momentum, creating counterweights to the inherent narrowing effect. The author ultimately realized that while AI enhanced speed, it didn't automatically protect the breadth of thinking. The author concludes that judgment requires divergence first and that careful speed management is necessary to avoid the cost of narrower thought. They emphasize learning how to effectively use AI tools rather than simply knowing them.