A year-long experiment in redesigning work and life in the age of AI.
Whether we like it or not, artificial intelligence (AI) is the next major technological revolution, and, perhaps, our doom… (hopefully not!). AI is already changing how we work, learn, and make decisions. For knowledge workers in particular, the changes are happening quickly and in wildly different ways. For a lot us (most of us?) AI just sort of popped up into all our digital tools without much warning (or permission) and little to zero guidance.
While I acknowledge the concerns about AI, it is also exciting to be able to figure out new ways of doing things. I can only speak for myself but I have lots of ideas and never enough time! AI has saved me time doing tedious work that would normally take a lot of time or that I wouldn’t even have time to do at all.
You’re probably wondering what kinds of things? Well, things like writing SPSS syntax to recode variable labels, clean up data, and run analyses, creating specific images for me to include in presentations that I have a hard time finding (for example, nurses wearing white scrub tops specifically), and learning how to use code to make my Brightspace course sites more user-friendly for my students (yes, you can do that).
I’ve found myself thinking less about what AI can do and more about what work actually needs to be done in the first place.
We spend a lot of time talking about how AI can help us write emails, summarize meetings, or automate repetitive tasks. Those are worthwhile conversations. But I think there is a deeper question that deserves our attention: Are we doing work that is truly necessary?
And if we are, are we doing it in the best possible way?
These questions have become increasingly important to me because they sit at the intersection of so many of my interests. Throughout my career, I’ve studied leadership, healthy work environments, technology adoption, workforce sustainability, and organizational systems. Long before ChatGPT appeared, I was involved in research exploring the use of technology. These projects include exercise interventions with self-monitoring technologies (via Blackberry phones back in the day), passive home monitoring systems to help older adults age in place, exploring physiotherapists’ use of robotic exoskeletons with rehab patients, and an educational video game to promote careers in nursing homes. Looking back, technology has been a recurring thread throughout much of my work.
I’m also very fortunate to work in a faculty where innovation and creativity are encouraged. For example, our Master’s and PhD programs are primarily online now, which makes it more feasible for mid-career nurses (who are mostly women with job, mortgages, and often, caregiving responsibilities) to pursue advanced degrees. We have also become a leader in virtual reality simulation in undergraduate nursing education. It’s exciting to be part of!
I’ve also always been fascinated by productivity as a way of creating more time for the things that matter most. I love planning and organizing! And even though I love technology (when it’s awesome and works properly), I still use a paper planner in combination with digital tools. I’ve spent years experimenting with different systems, apps, and workflows. I’ve realized that the purpose of planning and creating personal productivity systems is not just to stay organized and “put the big rocks in the jar first” (and yes, those are both important), or to do just do more and more endlessly, but to be able to spend the one precious life that we have creating a meaningful life.
Beginning in September, I’ll be running a series of personal experiments to redesign my work and personal life around a simple question:
How can I spend more of my time doing the things that only I can do?
Each month over the next year, I’m going to focus on one area or theme and consider what’s working well and what isn’t, where I might want to intentionally redesign or establish a new way of doing something, etc.
Some experiments will succeed.
Some will fail.
I’ll write about both.
This isn’t a quest to become infinitely productive or to optimize every minute of my day. If anything, it’s the opposite.
It’s an experiment in stewardship.
How do we use our finite time, energy, attention, and talents more wisely?
How do we reduce unnecessary complexity?
How do we create more space for deep thinking, meaningful work, creativity, family, and rest?
And perhaps the biggest question of all:
If technology keeps making us more efficient, why do so many knowledge workers feel busier than ever?
I don’t have answers yet and that’s the point.
This project is an invitation to explore those questions with me.
Welcome to The Parsimony Project.
Emily Read, PhD, RN 