“It gave me more time. It made me think less.”
What 120 people said about using AI
It’s easy to get caught up in the hype (my worst word and one that ChatGPT loves to throw at me, but in this instance it’s valid). AI is going to save us time, make us smarter, automate the boring stuff, and unlock human potential - at least, that’s the promise.
But what’s it actually doing?
To answer that, I ran a survey of 120 people in the UK to understand how AI is really impacting our daily lives - not in theory, but in practice. And what I found was quietly profound: AI is both solving and creating problems, depending entirely on how we use it.
The quiet benefits no one’s talking about
Forget grand pronouncements about the future of work - the biggest benefits of AI, according to the people I surveyed, are deeply personal and surprisingly practical:
Better time management (38%)
Better organisation (37%)
Reduced workload (30%)
Improved existing skills (26%)
Helped people learn new skills or hobbies (16%)
Created more free time (16%)
In short: AI is quietly making life more manageable for a lot of people.
What struck me most was how many people weren’t using AI to do groundbreaking things - they were using it to finally stay on top of life. To handle the admin. To make space for learning. To feel a little more in control.
That’s a huge win.
But it’s not all upside
Among the positive feedback were a few red flags - and they’re worth paying attention to:
Made me think less (13%)
Increased screen time (10%)
Increased anxiety (4%)
Created emotional disconnection (3%)
Increased workload (3%)
These aren’t just tech teething issues - they’re signals. For some, AI is encouraging passive thinking. For others, it’s amplifying stress, dependency, or isolation.
When people say AI is a mirror, this is what they mean. It reflects and magnifies what’s already there: the good and the uncomfortable. It helps us get more done. But it can also strip away friction in ways that make us lazy, distracted, or overwhelmed if we’re not careful.
AI is not the future - it’s your Tuesday
What really came through in the survey is this: AI is already here, in small, invisible ways. It’s not just the big bold headlines about robotics and job displacement. It’s the invisible tweaks to your calendar, the summaries of your notes, the automated replies you send.
And that’s why this moment matters so much. Because most people aren’t being taught how to consciously use these tools. They’re just letting the tech drift into their routines and hoping it makes things better.
But what if better isn’t automatic?
So where do you sit on the AI spectrum?
If AI has entered your life - even just a little - how is it changing you?
Are you more organised or more distracted?
More productive or more anxious?
More skilled or more passive?
I believe AI should work for humans, not the other way around. And to make that happen, we need spaces to explore what’s changing - with real curiosity, not just compliance.
That’s why I’m launching the AI Edit, a coaching community for people who want to use this technology with purpose, clarity, and a bit more humanity. We’re a bunch of people who will go on a journey together to become powerful and successful in an AI-enabled world. Want to join us?
Because the real AI transformation isn’t in the tools. It’s in how we choose to use them.