Cognitive Offload
EARLY APRIL. Yes, it’s raining again. We needed it.
This Week in Rands
"Cognitive offload" is a phrase I keep hearing relative to AI. The idea is this. By asking the robots to do the work, you are offloading the important work of doing the work or solving the problem. You’re offloading the important bits of trial and error, trying experiments, fixing broken stuff, getting yourself unstuck, and learning.
Speaking as an avid robot user, I understand the perceived magic of getting the robots to do heretofore boring or repetitive work, but I can confirm that the last thing I’m doing is offloading. Yes, it feels like a totally different set of skills getting the robots to dance, but while the words are different, the cognition loop is familiar:
- Did the robot do what I asked?
- If not, why?
- What do we need to do differently in the future to prevent this from occurring again?
You can replace robot with EVERY HUMAN I’VE EVER WORKED WITH OR FOR in the above statements. Being capable of consistently asking these questions, listening, and using judgment has turned out pretty well for me.
As I write this week, not only are the robots helping me get long-imagined ideas done, but the result of our dance often makes my ideas stronger.
Leadership Links
- This comes up a lot, and honestly, most leaders aren’t asleep. They just don’t feel enough pain yet to justify changing: https://www.reddit.com/r/Leadership/comments/1sk1p6g/this_comes_up_a_lot_and_honestly_most_leaders/
- AI Changes Everything — Except This: https://www.franksonnenbergonline.com/blog/ai-changes-everything-except-this/
- Comfort makes you stupid: https://leadershipfreak.blog/2026/04/09/comfort-makes-you-stupid/