There are human skills we need to protect

There are human skills we need to protect. Practice deliberately, deep thought, critical thinking and the ability to challenge. In a high demand and time poor world, the risk is using AI to give the answer and just going with it, rather than augment ‘wisdom’. This will show up in several ways, including uneven skill development. Generational differences will also matter for those who grew up before and after AI was embedded at scale in work.

Cognitive decline vs cognitive overload. I heard two competing ideas. One is that we outsource thinking and see cognitive decline. The other is that by automating the lighter tasks, we remove natural recovery time and end up with sustained high‑cognitive work and overload. Perhaps both are true, and we end up with polarization. If so, that points to two distinct responses: building habits that strengthen reflection and judgement vs protecting focus and recovery so people can sustain higher‑order thinking.