AI and creativity

AI can create almost instantly.

It can write a poem, make an image, suggest an idea, compose music or turn a few words into something we might never have thought to make ourselves. There is something helpful about that.

I’m curious about what happens to our own creativity when creating becomes so easy.

When the blank page disappears

Starting something can take time. I often need time to sit with an idea before I know where it wants to go.

We might have an idea but not know how to express it. We might make something that doesn't quite work and try again. AI can remove some of that uncertainty. We can ask for an idea, a starting point or even a finished piece.

Our attention can move quickly from What could I create? to What can AI create for me?

The value of making

Creating something ourselves isn't always about the finished result.

It can be in the thinking, experimenting, making mistakes and discovering something we didn't expect. We might write something and find that the words lead us somewhere we hadn't planned to go. We might draw something that doesn't look quite right but still means something to us.

The process can be part of what makes creating meaningful.

When AI becomes the creator

Perhaps there are things we will happily ask AI to create for us.

There are also things we may want to keep creating ourselves. We might write because we want to find our own words. Take a photograph because we noticed something beautiful. Cook because we enjoy making something. Make something with our hands simply because we can.

The question may not be whether AI can create.

Perhaps it's whether we still want to.

Paying attention to our own ideas

AI can give us possibilities very quickly.

Yet sometimes our own ideas need time. We might let an idea sit for a while. Follow a thought that doesn't seem important at first. Make something imperfect. Stay curious about where our attention takes us.

Perhaps creativity needs some space to unfold.

What do we want to create for ourselves?

AI may change what creating looks like.

It may become a tool we use alongside our own imagination, rather than something that replaces it.

Perhaps caring for our attention means noticing when we reach for AI to create something, and asking whether we want the result or the experience of creating it ourselves. Sometimes we may choose AI.

Sometimes we may choose to stay with our own ideas.

I wonder what you might notice the next time you have an idea, and whether you might give your own attention a little time to see where it takes you.