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Something scary is happening with the way people use AI.
I see it online every day. I see it with younger learners especially.
They are not using AI to learn.
They are using AI to think for them.
And it always reminds me of an idea from the book Humanless Work by Khufere Qhamata. (I interviewed him on my YouTube channel, by the way.)
AI could be the best thing we have ever created, or a total disaster.
It all depends on how we use it.
We already made this mistake once
Social media was supposed to help us connect.
But today, we don't call our friends. We don't visit our families.
We see a picture or a story and think:
"He's fine. I don't need to call him."
Then a whole year passes.
The author says if we make the same mistake with AI, it will be much worse. Because this is the first time in history we have created something that can think.
And if you let it, it will do all the thinking for you. All the work. All the learning.
That's when AI stops being your tool.
And starts owning you.
Finishing a task vs. learning a skill
Imagine you have an essay exam. Your close friend is an English teacher, so you ask them to write it for you.
Your teacher reads it and says:
"Amazing essay, Maria!"
But you didn't write it. You cheated.
That is how most people use AI today.
Or imagine paying a personal trainer, going to the gym, and then just sitting there while the trainer lifts all the weights.
Session over. "Great workout! Let's go home."
You paid. You showed up. But you didn't get any stronger.
Ask yourself this one question
Every time you use AI, ask:
"What can I do on my own now that I couldn't do before?"
Can you speak more fluently? Write better emails? Read faster? Come up with better ideas?
If the answer is nothing, then AI is doing the work. Not you.
A good trainer makes you so strong that one day, you don't need them anymore. That's how you should use AI.
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You are the boss. AI is the assistant.
What kind of boss has an assistant who knows more, writes better, and does all the work while the boss just sits there?
Don't be that boss. Instead:
Correct it. AI makes mistakes. When something sounds wrong, say so.
Ask it to quiz you. After every lesson, ask AI to test you on what you learned.
Ask why. Don't just copy the answer. Understand it.
Stay vigilant. Never believe everything it tells you.
2 Words to Know
vigilant (adjective): careful and watchful, always ready to notice mistakes or danger.
"Stay vigilant when you use AI. It isn't always right."
gullible (adjective): believing everything people tell you, so you are easy to trick.
"If we trust AI blindly, we become gullible."
AI doesn't know right from wrong. You do.
A few days ago, at a store near my house, a man walked up to a woman and showed her a photo of her car. It was damaged.
"I'm so sorry, I just hit your car. Give me your driver's license, phone number, and insurance, and I'll fix it."
She went to check her car.
It was perfectly fine.
He had taken a picture of her car and used AI to make it look damaged. All to steal her personal information.
AI isn't evil. It's just a tool. But it doesn't care about right and wrong. And it doesn't care about you.
That's why you have to stay in control.
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AI is not going anywhere. It's here to stay.
The only question is how you use it.
See you next time,
Ziyad
The English Zone