Productivity Is About to Get a Massive Overhaul

I don’t know if you can feel what I’m feeling, but a MAJOR shift is coming. It’s almost here. It’s a shift that is reshaping how we work, how we live, and how we meet ourselves and others in the quieter parts of the day.

The Doing More with Less Effort Era is Here

The truth is, we are now in an era where the possibility exists that tasks that once demanded hours, days, or even weeks can now be completed in minutes.

Case in point:

I recently designed some new training materials, from concept to finish, in just 40 minutes, a job that in the past has taken me days and sometimes weeks to organize. Confession: I used ChatGPT 5 to do this. (WHAT???)

Of course, I did not (and never would!) just use what ChatGPT generated as the final and done product. But it did help me figure out the schedule and syllabus accurately and helped me elaborate on the key course learning requirements that need to be covered and map them to my own ideas of how the course content should flow. Now all I have to do is go in and refine things and add my personal touch.

You see how this works? ChatGPT did the messy, clunky, time-consuming stuff like formatting documents and figuring out dates and deadlines, and this freed up my time so I can focus on being creative. Ultimately, my end product is going to be better than it ever could be had I used only my limited time and resources to develop things.

I have started thinking of AI as an assistant, not a creator, and that one shift is changing the game for me. It’s still MY ideas, knowledge, experience, and perspective. It’s still my stuff. But my assistant (in this case ChatGPT) helped out a lot by making sure that I thought of everything and by taking the menial tasks like document formatting out of my hands (like any assistant worth their salt should!).

It’s miraculous, and I’ve only started to scratch the surface on what is possible.

As a self-proclaimed productivity junkie, I feel like I am finally ahead in the game of productivity, at long last.

It Feels Like Cheating

In 1876, Alexander Graham Bell offered to sell the patent for the telephone to Western Union for $100,000. Western Union declined the offer, reportedly calling the telephone a "toy" with "no commercial possibilities." In a sense, people felt like the telephone was cheating the familiar systems of mail, telegraphs, and seeing people in person. What’s the point? Why don’t we just keep doing things the way we’ve always done them?

Every technological leap since the beginning of time has felt like cheating until it became the norm. When email replaced typewritten and handwritten memos (remember inter-office mail?), it was revolutionary. Voicemail, fax machines, the Internet, social media, and even working from home felt radical at first. Now? You and I are now writing, living, and thinking within worlds that are shaped by these everyday, perfectly normal things.

This new wave of productivity that is centred around leveraging AI does feel like cheating. It still seems like a bit of sorcery, to be honest. But remember, so did every good technological innovation before it. We know deep down that ultimately, it’s all about growth.

The Even More Epic Impact of AI

Leveraging AI in one’s day-to-day isn’t just about efficiency. It’s also about our mental health, work–life balance, and even the quality of our relationships. Let’s explore this.

When the everyday drudgery of doing all those little daily tasks that add up is no longer there, it leaves space for something soft and human to grow in its place. It means we finally have time for the really important things, like patience, presence, and meaningful connection.

Who feels like they are busier than they have ever been? Is it any wonder we are overwhelmed? Since the world connected digitally, we have gotten so bloody busy. The inputs we have to deal with on a daily basis now, like texts, emails, social media, and the always-on nature of things, have maxed us out mentally and emotionally. It’s simply not sustainable, and things like the analogue movement and digital detoxes are becoming more prevalent the more stressed we get.

But the tsunami of information isn’t the problem. It’s how we are dealing with it that is causing the grief.

So, what happens when you remove some of the pressure? When we have tools to help us deal with the overflow of information coming at us, whether that’s outlining a report, analyzing data, brainstorming content ideas and strategies, or learning how to fix the hinges on your front door, AI is changing the game rapidly.

I believe that this transformation is going to help us do amazing things, like rediscover deep thinking. Need space to reflect? It’s suddenly there because we’re not bleeding time on coding errors or other mundane tasks. Delegating the tedious and boring stuff to AI means that we will have a lot more time to be present with our families, friends, colleagues…even ourselves.

Connecting More (Even with Less)

Have you ever noticed that when you have fewer distractions, you tend to connect more deeply? If you’re having dinner with friends and nobody is on their phone, you can really embrace and enjoy the time you spend together. If you’re not worrying about the dumb little details, you will find yourself having more conversations and typing fewer messages.

A Shift in Consciousness

The big question I’ve been pondering lately is, if using AI productively frees us from the grind, what does that make room for?

Perhaps the benefit of productivity is not about ticking off more on your to-do list but about reshaping how we experience life. When we aren’t bogged down in the mechanics of menial tasks, we free up space for presence. We have time to notice the way light falls through a window or the way a conversation feels when you’re not half-distracted by emails and mentions.

I think that, if we do it right, AI could actually nudge us toward a new kind of consciousness, one where “work” doesn’t just define us by output but by how fully we engage with the world and with those around us.

Maybe the AI overhaul isn’t about efficiency at all. It’s about awakening.

What Comes Next?

We’re at the dawn of something fascinating and life-changing, again. What if the real goal of this new era isn’t to trim seconds off tasks but to create space for the moments that matter?

Productivity isn’t about doing more. It’s about being more. More present, more thoughtful, and ultimately, more connected to what truly matters.