We Are Serving People, Not Saving Lives

On Day 1 of writing every day for thirty days I’m telling you why I cancelled my Premium ChatGPT subscription and I have never felt so free.

My earliest memories of living an efficiency-focused life go all the way back to elementary school. I remember being in the library in third grade and doing the math— I would graduate high school in 2007, go to college, become a teacher, become a mom, and eventually retire. I don't know, the vision falls off around there.

The vision ingrained in me by society for as long as I can remember falls off and becomes vague after... retirement?

After retirement I am allowed to relax. To slow down. To no longer rush to the next stage of life. Retirement is when you can supposedly let off the gas. Where the pressure subsides and efficiency is no longer necessary to simply meet expectations.

I call bullshit.

"WE ARE SERVING PEOPLE, NOT SAVING LIVES."

That's what my head server told me when I was in a panic because someone's cheese sticks were delayed. She was right. We were not saving lives, we were waiting tables. It was a Friday, the restaurant was packed, and I was in the weeds. I was letting the expectations I had for myself send me into a spiral instead of getting back to the reason I was there in the first place-- connect the guest to a delicious meal with an experience that would bring them back for more.

Most of us are not in the business of saving lives. Most of us just want to do something meaningful so we can realize our own life's vision. So some of us start small service based businesses to do that.

WHAT ARE YOU RUSHING TOWARDS?

It's easy to hit the gas pedal. Fun even. But what are you rushing towards and is it an emergency?

Will you still get there, maybe even in better shape, if you take your time?

The point the head server wanted to make is that it was going to take however long it was going to take and no amount of panicking on my part was going to make the cheese sticks come any faster. We needed to focus on something we could control.

Communication.

I didn't realize it at the time, but she was telling me I needed to stop focusing on efficiency and start focusing on damage control. I needed to use the rapport I had built with my table to fulfill my purpose -- connect the guest to a delicious meal with an experience that would bring them back for more.

So I did and they got their cheese sticks and everyone lived (happily ever after probably).

YOU CAN'T GET THAT WITH CHATGPT.

Today, I find myself at a crossroads. I understand the value of personal connection in service based businesses but I also see the demand for efficiency for those same women.

Here are some of the expectations I'm seeing business owners face 👉

• near immediate responses to inquiries

• competitive pricing

• smooth customer service experience

We were left with a few options. None of them were cheap, and even fewer were wonderful to use. So over the last couple of years, many of us found ourselves rerouting to AI. A combination of outside help and "internal oversight" controlled by the user (business owner).

It's incredible. Truly. I am amazed at what efficiencies can be made in business and personal lives. AI can draft emails, organize information, brainstorm ideas, summarize documents, and automate repetitive tasks in seconds.

It frees up time so you can... 👉 WHAT?

What are we all rushing so quickly towards because when I started using AI because it made me more efficient I didn't spend more time doing the things I wanted to do. I just did more of the things that contradicted my purpose for starting this business in the first place.

All I did was raise my bar for production. I fell back into that societal trap that tells us to work, work, work. Produce, produce, produce. Money, money, money.

BUT WHERE DOES IT STOP?

AI today... but what happens tomorrow? Evolving your brand is crucial to stay relevant but any evolution that takes the person out of the actual business is a "no" for me.

So I cancelled my Premium ChatGPT subscription. I limit myself to the good ole free version and I have rules around using it.

My purpose is to empower women in their 30s, 40s & 50s to build businesses where they are seen, valued, and connected. Utilizing AI as a practical means to grow a business is reasonable. Using AI without any boundaries was a free ticket to an amusement park I didn't even want to visit.

Here are some guidelines I use when using ChatGPT or other artificial intelligence. I anticipate they will evolve over time, just as knowledge does 👉

• no paid versions

• when I've reached the limit, I've reached the limit

• create lists, event name options

• proofread & clarify

• cross reference "facts"

• troubleshooting technology

So, tell me in the comments, what are you rushing toward by "freeing" up so much time and capacity with AI?

Is it really so much time that you need to remove yourself from that task?

Does it even need to be done right now, or have we just convinced ourselves that's what customers expect?

We are not saving lives. But we could be stepping onto a hamster wheel of pure exhaustion trying to keep up.

If your service based business exists to serve other people, be very intentional about how you use AI moving forward. In a world inundated with artificial intelligence, people still want people. They want to be served by them. They want to connect with them.