I was reading the Pew Research report last week and it confirmed what I’ve been hearing all summer in conversations with folks in Lisboa, Porto, Vienna and across the US.
The data is clear. 53% of Americans believe AI will worsen our ability to think creatively. Concern about AI in daily life has jumped from 37% to 50% since 2021.
While people are right to be concerned, their fears do not reflect an inevitable outcome. The gap between AI making us our most creative selves and our laziest selves comes down to how we choose to use and integrate this technology into our work and lives.
Vienna and the Promise of Augmentation
I was in Vienna during TEDAI Vienna, Europe’s official three-day TED Conference on AI that ran September 24-26. While I didn’t attend the conference itself, being in the city during that time sparked fascinating conversations with leaders working on AI governance in the EU.
What struck me most was our shared excitement about what AI makes possible when used strategically. We all felt the same sense of responsibility to help companies and leaders understand how AI can and should augment human capability, not replace it.
These conversations felt urgent and hopeful in equal measure.
The Lisboa and Munich Warning
The Vienna conversations stood in sharp contrast to what I heard earlier this year in Lisboa and Munich. I spoke with several digital nomads, freelancers working for large companies, who were frustrated and fed up. They weren’t complaining about AI itself. They were complaining about their direct contacts at these companies.
Middle managers, in their words, were “dumbing down” their work through an over-reliance on AI without ever using AI well. These managers were accepting AI-generated first drafts as final products. They were outsourcing judgment to algorithms without adding strategic thinking. They were cutting corners instead of creating leverage.
The freelancers could see it happening in real time. Quality declining. Creative thinking evaporating. Strategic value disappearing.
And here’s the thing that made it worse: the middle managers using AI this way weren’t even aware they were doing it. They thought they were being efficient. They thought they were keeping up with innovation. They were actually falling behind while dragging their teams down with them.
Don’t Be That Kind of Leader
AI becomes dangerous and ultimately counterproductive when we let it replace our thinking rather than augment it. When we accept the first draft as the final version instead of using it as a starting point to expand our thoughts and perspectives. When we outsource judgment instead of using AI to sharpen it by challenging our assumptions and uncovering undeveloped hypotheses.
AI can be your strategic advantage if you use it to augment, not replace. Let the technology handle the basics so you can focus on what requires human brilliance. Use it to test ideas, strengthen arguments, and expand your thinking. Utilize AI to automate mundane tasks, allowing you to focus on innovation and vision.
AI does not have vision. You do.
This truth applies whether you’re leading a law firm, running a business, or managing a team. Do not ignore AI or use it as a crutch. Let the technology elevate your capabilities, not diminish them.
The Choice Is Yours
I support leaders in developing use cases that make AI work for augmentation, not replacement. Use cases that unlock creativity, boost productivity, and create efficiencies that matter. The future belongs to those who know how to pair human creativity with technological power.
Use, train, and encourage your teams to use AI strategically and creatively, not lazily. The digital nomads in Lisboa and Munich were watching their work get diminished by leaders who didn’t know better. Your team is watching you too.
Want to continue this conversation? Follow me and connect on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/in/iamcoachtc where I share insights on AI strategy, global leadership, and creative augmentation.
Read the full Pew Research report: How Americans View AI and Its Impact on People and Society
