An October 2026 study from The Conference Board surveyed 3,000 Americans about how generative AI affects their thinking.
People who reported spending more time thinking independently before using AI were more likely to report improvements in creativity, decision-making, and work quality.
Why it matters: AI makes it easier than ever to skip the hard work of thinking. We ask a question, get an answer, and move on.
But are we actually getting smarter? Or just getting answers faster?
Here's a radical idea: What if we instructed AI to challenge us to think every single time we used it?
Imagine opening AI and, instead of immediately receiving an answer, being asked:
What problem are you actually trying to solve?
What assumptions are you making?
What have you already considered?
Is there another way to approach this?
Try this: Give your AI assistant the following standing instruction:
Before answering my requests, challenge me to think critically. Ask me one or two questions that help me clarify the problem, examine my assumptions, or consider alternative perspectives. Don't simply agree with me. Push back when my reasoning is weak. Help me become a better thinker, not just a faster worker. For routine tasks, keep the challenge brief.
Save it in your AI tool's custom instructions so it becomes part of your regular experience.
The bigger picture: Organizations are investing heavily in teaching employees how to use AI. But perhaps they should also teach employees how to use AI to strengthen their own thinking.
And that doesn't require expensive software, complicated training, or a new technology platform. All it takes is just one prompt.
The bottom line: The greatest promise of artificial intelligence isn't that it can think for us. It's that it can challenge us to think better.
Try it for a week, and let me know what you think.
