Everywhere I look, we’re all talking about AI, how we’re using it, what’s right, what’s wrong and what’s next. It’s revolutionising productivity and yet as with most quickly evolving tech, there are also unintended consequences. One of the things I’ve noticed is now that we can have so many ideas, churn through so much work, carry around our own brainstorming partner that always agrees and never gets tired – we’re tired.

Yes, AI has revolutionised the way we work and how we think, create and produce but it’s coming at a cost that this should have saved us from – cognitive overload and burnout.

If we used to get 20 things done in a day and now it’s 40, AI has doubled our productivity. But if we’re now thinking about 40 things across a day not 20, our mental load has also doubled. What we’re seeing as an unintended consequence of AI revolutionising productivity is that our brains can’t keep up.

AI is evolving much faster than our brains do and this cognitive load is impacting our sense of exhaustion, overwhelm and ability to function.

Burnout hasn’t gone away we’ve just found news ways of increasing the stress on an already stretch system – our human brains.

So, use AI and use it wisely is my take and know that the things we’ve been taught prior to the AI evolution – taking breaks, quiet time, space, focus, tech detoxes etc – become more important now than ever.

Use AI but don’t let AI use you. Be mindful of your cognitive load and know to step away when feelings of mental overload appear.

If you’re looking to improve productivity, reduce overwhelm and create more calm in your work and life – get in touch. I’d love to chat about how I can help you and your team.