Category: Decision Making

How People are Really Using ChatGPT

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Are you concerned that AI is coming for your job?

Since it exploded onto the scene in 2022, ChatGPT and its AI cousins have created a sensation. Aspects of knowledge work that were always assumed to be the province of humans can now be done in mere moments with the proper prompt. This has led many prognosticators to assume that AI will take over all white-collar work. After three years of these AI tools, what is the actual truth?

A recent post from Daniel Pfeiffer on the website Choice360 sheds light on what people are actually doing with ChatGPT. In a review of a study of 1 million conversations, Pfeiffer discovered that the assumed absorption of knowledge work by AI tools is not what it seems. For starters, more people are using ChatGPT outside of work than at the office.

One of the key takeaways from this report is that, though work-related usages of ChatGPT continue to grow, they are wildly outpaced by nonwork-related usages, which have grown from 53 to 73 percent of all ChatGPT messages. This finding raises two important questions: Given its ostensible economic promises, why isn’t work-related usage growing faster, and why is nonwork usage growing so much? 

Pfeiffer speculates that the clean AI interface has become preferable for regular searching than the messier Google page. The results are also easier for the average person to interpret, saving them time previously used to click through to other websites.

Another assumption is that most people are using ChatGPT to write the original copy of documents. However, actual use appears to be different.

Given the prized role of writing in educational environments, many academics might assume that when people use ChatGPT “for writing,” they’re using it specifically to generate new text from scratch—hence, the return of blue books. What this report finds, however, is that about two-thirds of all writing tasks have ChatGPT modify existing text, e.g., editing it for errors, adjusting the tone, or offering critiques, rather than generating new text. 

On closer inspection, Pfeifer wonders if this finding holds for all types of users.

As we await more data, I think it behooves us to keep in mind that “writing” encompasses a range of activities. While we might imagine that students are asking ChatGPT to “write a seven-page essay on the Civil War,” for instance, they might well be using it to “make this email sound more professional.” 

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A third issue considered in the study is the economic impact of generative AI on workers. The media discussion often assumes that AI will take away jobs, especially lower-level knowledge work. Again, that may not be the case yet.

To get a more granular picture, researchers ran all the work-related messages through a different taxonomy based on common work activities, e.g., communicating with supervisors, scheduling events, and training others. They found that 57.9 percent of work-related messages fell into two broad categories “1) obtaining, documenting, and interpreting information; and 2) making decisions, giving advice, solving problems, and thinking creatively”. In other words, people are using ChatGPT less as a replacement worker and more as an advisor and research assistant. 

Reflecting on this finding, Pfieffer comes to this conclusion.

“ChatGPT likely improves worker output by providing decision support, which is especially important in knowledge-intensive jobs where productivity is increasing in the quality of decision-making.”  

Finally, Pfieffer speculates on the impact of hallucinations. As librarians have long complained, it is easy for people to believe what AI says rather than confirm that it is true. The study does not measure the effect of wrong information on people’s productivity and decisions.

The full blog post is worth a read. You can find it on the Choice360 website.

Do You Do Low-Value Work?

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Do you have more to do than you have time to do it in?

It is a common problem for knowledge workers to feel overwhelmed by the sheer number of possible tasks and projects on the table. The challenge is determining which one of the many items are priorities, which would be nice to do, and which are really not worth the time. Is there a way to make this assessment?

A few years ago, Priscilla Claman tackled this problem in the Harvard Business Review with an article called Stop Doing Low-Value Work. She believes part of the problem is that knowledge workers tend to inherit tasks from other workers, especially when those people leave the organization.

Although the jobs went away, much of the work didn’t. Teachers ended up with more children in a classroom; customer service representatives ended up with more phone calls; and managers ended up with more people to manage as teams were consolidated. No matter the job, everyone ended up with a lot more work.

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Therefore, how can a knowledge worker identify and eliminate low-value work? One way is through automation. This is especially true with the new AI tools, although the article was written before the Chat GPT revolution.

Whether you are talking about scheduling, acknowledging, or making standard arrangements, there are probably existing applications that you could use. Just figure out what you want to do and find someone to help you do it.

She also suggests simply asking around to see if there are tasks that are now unnecessary. Then with that permission drop the items from your list.

Another approach is to ask your clients if you can not do something, just the way retail store clerks now ask people if they really want their receipts. The idea is simply to stop doing something that isn’t important, but to check first so that it doesn’t get you into trouble.

To learn more about how to eliminate low-value tasks from your lists, please read the rest of the article.

Don’t Get Fooled or Conned Again

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Have you ever been fooled?

For example, being tricked into a purchase you didn’t need, or falling for an online scam. It seems like we are exposed to more and more cons every day. Therefore, how can we better defend ourselves from in person and online tricksters?

A few years ago, Daryl Chen posted an article on the TED Ideas website titled, Don’t Get Fooled or Conned Again: Here are the 5 Tactics to Look Out For. Chen began by examining the problem. The challenge he finds is that being fooled happens internally.

What’s fascinating about examples like these is that while they’re perpetrated by other people or entities, the real work of persuasion largely takes place in our heads, according to UK-based presenter and broadcaster Alexis Conran. “Magic and sales and scams and political beliefs all happen in the mind of the spectator,” Conran points out in a TEDxBerlin talk.

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Chen proceeds to discuss the first way that we are often fooled. It is through the simple use of misdirection.

Misdirection is an age-old tactic used by thieves of all kinds. It’s why pickpockets snatch wallets when they know we’re occupied by an outdoors concert or fireworks display or by reading our phones or books while we commute.

Misdirection can occur on a more subtle level, too. It’s why companies and governments often release bad news on Fridays or before major holidays — they’re obliged to announce a weak earnings report or the so-so unemployment rate but they’re hoping that the weekend or holiday distracts us from fixating on it.

To learn the other four ways we get fooled, please read the rest of the article.

Upcoming Efficient Librarian Webinars

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I’m delighted to share that five Efficient Librarian webinars are scheduled through August and September. Over the course of the different webinars, I’ll be sharing tips and techniques on topics such as clearing your inbox, managing employees, and the rewards and challenges of leadership.

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To learn more about each webinar, please click through to the sponsoring organization. The great news is that the PLAN webinars are free to all Florida library staff.

August 21, 3 pm (EST)
Overcoming the Email Avalanche: Three Steps to an Empty Inbox
PLAN Webinar

September 3, 2:30 pm (EST)
Managing Employee Performance Using the SBI Method
ALA Webinars

September 4, 3 pm (EST)
Leadership: Challenges and Rewards
PLAN Webinar

September 17, 3 pm (EST)
Developing Motivated Cultures: Six Simple Factors that Shape Your Organization
PLAN Webinar

September 21, 3 pm (EST)
Managing Employee Performance: A Simple Formula for Talking with Staff
PLAN Webinar

A big thank you to PLAN and ALA for inviting me to present. I look forward to seeing you at the webinars.

What is Your Clutter Personality?

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Take a moment to look around your room.

Are there items in your surroundings that are out of place? Are there scattered belongings that need to be tidied up? If so, how long have all these possessions been sitting there waiting to be cleared up?

No matter how diligent we are clutter seems to inevitably fill our lives. How we react to it and eventually address can be challenging. Nonetheless, are there ways to more successfully clear clutter by understanding how we interact with it?

Kat Brancato at the website Real Simple believes that each of us has a clutter personality. Understanding how each type acclimates to that clutter is a key to clearing it out. In her recent article, Kat explains six different clutter personalities, and how each one needs its own approach their mess to resolve.

Organizing methods are like diets—what works for one person may not work for you. Diane N. Quintana, certified professional organizer and founder of DNQ Solutions, LLC, says that organizing anything is a very personal journey.

“Each one of us is unique, so while there are organizing tendencies, you may find that parts of one or more of the organizing personalities resonate with you,” she informs.

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Kat then explores the clutter personalities, starting with the “Out of Sight, Out of Mind” type.

Do you tend to keep your counters riddled with items so you know where they are? Quintana says that the “out of sight, out of mind” personality likes to see what they have. “If something is stored away, it may as well not exist,” she says. “These individuals leave things out to remember them, which often leads to cluttered countertops, desks, or floors. It also results in things being misplaced or lost amongst the clutter.”

Since this personality type needs visual reminders, Quintana suggests using clear containers, labeled baskets, or open shelving to keep important items visible and tidy. “A photo inventory of contents attached to the outside of the clear containers can also be helpful,” she adds.

To read about the remaining five types, please read the rest of her article.

The Death of Goals

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Have you recently created a set of clear, written goals?

Most career advice emphasizes the idea of writing down measurable goals that one then pursues with laser focus. This is said to be the key to success in work and life. However, is this advice sound?

In a post on his website, Tiago Forte pondered the idea that we have reached the Death of Goals. He starts by lamenting the continued assumption that SMART goals are the be all and end all of achievement.

Every time I bring up “SMART goals,” I can see the light go out in my students’ eyes. An unmistakable feeling of dread and aversion fills the room, and the decline in energy and enthusiasm is palpable. They know they should set goals that way, but they don’t want to.

The SMART framework was developed 44 years ago by a director of corporate planning at an electric and natural gas utility – not exactly a paragon of modern business in the information age.

I knew traditional goals were an outdated relic of a bygone era, but I hadn’t figured out what to replace them with. After all, they seem like such a load-bearing pillar of modern society: you set an objective, you make a plan, and then you follow the steps to get there. 

To Tiago, a possible solution lies in the book, Why Greatness Cannot Be Planned, by Kenneth O. O. Stanley and Joel Lehman. For the authors, goals are fine when the project is about incremental improvement or completing rote tasks. However, the value of goals collapses when the scope of possibilities grows larger.

The problem arises when we try to scale up this modest strategy to greater achievements – those that involve true ambition, novel invention, innovative breakthroughs, or pushing the frontier.

These are the kinds of pursuits in which goals lose their power, and can actually become counterproductive and lead you in the opposite direction of progress.

To understand why, it’s helpful to think of achievement not as creating something completely new from scratch, but as searching a space of possibilities.

Tiago believes that goals work best when the environment is well defined. The problem comes when we encounter undefined and unknown conditions. As technology and society advances in unexpected directions, a reliance on goals can be a dead end.

For the most interesting, exciting, impactful achievements, goals are a false compass, distracting you from the highest potential directions. They induce a narrow tunnel vision, eliminating the serendipitous discovery, unorthodox creativity, and breakthrough innovation that are most valuable.

In other words, the best path through the vast hall of possibilities is not a straight one; it’s a twisty turny wild ride of daring leaps and hairpin pivots that would seem positively crazy to any outside observer.

The article ends with Tiago’s six steps to think outside of goals. These steps allow people to appreciate the value of interesting problems and expand their realm of thinking to a broader range of possibilities for success.

Read the full article to learn more about the limitation of goals and a possible alternative for progress.

So, what is your non-goal?

Who Should Attend?

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Have you ever attended a meeting and wondered why you are there?

Sometimes people send out meeting invites across the entire organization on the assumption that many heads are best. However, more attendees often make a meeting less productive. An article from Flowtrace indicated that 35% of survey respondents believed that limited the number of people in the room was important for meeting success.

When participants start to believe the meeting is a waste of time, their engagement slips. This can lead to mildly disruptive behavior, such as looking at phones or side-conversations. At worst, it can rise to active disruption in the form of pointless argumentation or snide comments.

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A cardinal rule of meetings is to invite as few people as possible, but enough to make the meeting effective. How should a meeting planner determine whom to invite? Here are a few parameters:

  • Does the meeting topic directly affect a potential attendee’s core job functions?
  • Are they directly responsible, or part of the team responsible, for the item discussed?
  • Will they carry out actions resulting from decisions made at the meeting?
  • Do they have specific expertise relating to the topic of the meeting?
  • Could a team leader attend in place of the whole team and report back?

For example, an early high level meeting to discuss the allocation of the materials selection budget could be attended by the division leaders, including collections, finance, and administration. A future meeting where the discussion reaches branch level allocations could be expanded to include the branch division head and specific managers who oversee special collections.

In addition, keep in mind that not all participants need to stay for the entire meeting. When someone is done with their portion of the meeting, allow them to exit if feasible. To that end, it is helpful to organize the meeting agenda to enable participants with limited roles to have their items discussed early so they can leave to resume their regular duties.

Remember, employees work time is valuable. Don’t waste their contributions by obligating them to attend unnecessary meetings. They will appreciate it.

The Secret to Success – Take Time Off

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When was the last time you took a vacation from work? I mean a true vacation where you unplugged completely from the office, not even peeking at your email once.

There is a mindset that we need to keep working to succeed. Breaks and vacations are seen as distractions from accomplishing goals. However, is this true or simply a recipe for burnout?

In an article on his website, Darius Foroux suggests that taking time off is actually vital to completing your goals. In fact, time off not only is good for your physical and mental well-being, but it also a way to increase creativity and focus. To start, he chastises the idea that taking time off is for wimps.

People who never take time off to do nothing are short-term focused. “I want to reach my goals! NOW!”

But as always, short-term thinking harms your long-term development and growth. What happens when you power through work and burn yourself out? In most instances, your results suffer, and you become less productive.

In some cases, you even become depressed — which will set you back even longer. 

His solution is to embrace time off from work. Whether it is deliberate breaks during the day or taking an unplugged vacation, time off has many benefits. One of the primary reasons breaks are important is that they give us time to think and process.

All ideas require processing. Are the ideas any good? Do I really want to do those things?

Again, that’s a thinking process. When you go from idea to execution, without processing, you often waste your time in hindsight.

Of course, you can never entirely prevent that. But by taking the time to process your ideas, you can prevent your future self a lot of pain, worry, and even money.

Read the full article on Foroux’s website to learn more benefits of taking time off.

Do You Measure Your Wealth in Money or Time?

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When people consider the idea of success, often they equate dollar signs as the measure. The belief is that having more money in the bank account equals greater satisfaction. However, one can have an abundance of dollars, but it is worthless when there is no time to enjoy it. Therefore, is it more accurate to say that a person should be measured by how much time freedom they have?

In a recent article on Lifehacker, writer Jeff Somers explores how control over one’s time rather than monetary wealth may be the best sign of success. He writes:

Time affluence—the feeling that you have enough time to accomplish everything you want to get done—is a crucial aspect of our happiness and sense of personal satisfaction. Time poverty is the opposite—that stressful feeling you get when there aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done. Between commuting to and from our jobs, the time spent working, then the chores at home, many of us barely have time to eat some dinner and maybe stream a show before collapsing into bed—and starting the process over again the next day.

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Later in the article he offers some time hacks that can free up valuable space in the day. The first method he discusses is organizing and prioritizing.

Since your time is limited, stop treating it like an amorphous, infinite resource you always have more of. Make lists of things you need or want to do and prioritize them. Then use time blocking to break each of those priorities into a fixed amount of time needed to accomplish them or at least move them toward completion. This avoids letting tasks pile up, which increases stress and that sense of not being in control of your time, and provides a visual guide to how your day will play out. And having clear times for specific activities to end will increase your efficiency.

Learn his other techniques for building up time affluence by reading the rest of the article.