Written by Kate Finn, our Training and Development Manager. Kate is on a mission to move AI out of the shadows and into the hands of empowered professionals.
In the corporate world, we often celebrate “the grind.” We value the long hours and the manual effort put into traditional processes. But as technology evolves, we’re seeing a new, counterproductive phenomenon emerging in the office: AI Shaming.
It usually starts with a simple story of innovation.
The Cost of “The Way We’ve Always Done It”
Recently, a manager overseeing a large team shared her struggle with us. Her mornings were swallowed by administrative paperwork, tasks that had to be done before she could actually start her “real” work. She was drowning, and her team was suffering because she didn’t have the bandwidth to support them.
She found a solution in Gemini Gems. By creating custom AI assistants to automate her repetitive morning documentation, she cut her processing time in half. She didn’t work less; she worked better. She gave that recovered time back to her team, boosting departmental productivity and morale.
However, when she shared her success, the response from a peer was cold: “That’s a strange use of AI. My manual process works just fine.”
In that moment, she felt “AI shamed.” The implication? That using a tool to be efficient was somehow a shortcut for the lazy, rather than a strategy for the sharp.
Shifting the Narrative: AI as the Ultimate Assistant
Our team believes it’s time to move away from the guilt and toward the goal. AI shouldn’t be viewed as a replacement for human effort, but as a high-level assistant that handles the “work about work.”
When we condemn the use of AI in business, we are essentially condemning:
- Time Recovery: The ability to pivot from admin to “money-making” activities.
- Employee Wellness: Reducing the burnout caused by repetitive, soul-crushing tasks.
- Scalability: Doing more with the same resources without exhausting the team.
Empowering Your Workforce: A Tailored Path to AI Adoption
Changing a corporate culture requires more than just handing out software licenses. It requires tailored training that addresses both the how and the why.
We work with enterprises to build custom training frameworks that:
- Identify Efficiency Gaps: We help your team find those “morning bottlenecks” where AI can provide the most relief.
- Standardize Best Practices: We move AI out of the “secret” shadows and into the light, creating company-wide prompts and “Gems” that everyone can benefit from.
- Combat the Stigma: We help leadership frame AI adoption as a professional skill, not a shortcut.
The Bottom Line
If you could automate a daily task and save five hours a week—time that could be spent on strategy, client relationships, or innovation—why wouldn’t you?
It’s time to stop shaming efficiency. Let’s start training for it.