I opened a fresh document on my computer as I prepared to start writing an article. This article.
But instead of seeing the usual blank page on my Microsoft Word interface, I saw a light gray icon and text near the top.
The text encouraged me to select the icon or tap a few keys to draft with Copilot.
Copilot is Microsoft’s Artificial Intelligence engine. When enabled, it writes from scratch on the user’s behalf – a process known as Generative AI.
This whole idea of computers writing for humans is somewhat novel. But it’s already made scores of Microsoft users more productive – saving them time while increasing their output.
It would have been useful for me too. It had been a busy few days, and the thought of typing out some fresh thoughts seemed daunting.
But I wasn’t ceding the pen that easily.
I typed my first words onto the page. And I watched the gray icon and text disappear.
10,000 hours.
That’s the amount of practice time it takes to master a craft.
Psychologist K. Anders Ericsson published this finding in a research paper in 1993, referring to it as Deliberate Practice. Acclaimed author Malcolm Gladwell later highlighted Ericsson’s work in a bestselling book, leading many readers to consciously adopt Deliberate Practice.
A 10,000 hour commitment is no picnic. If someone were to spend 4 hours of their day – every single day – practicing a task, it would take them nearly 7 years to attain “world class mastery” of it. Factor in the days skipped for holidays, illnesses, and other commitments, and that timeline is likely to stretch beyond a decade.
And yet, many of those who have accepted the challenge have seen its rewards. James Earl Jones went from being a man with a stutter to a versatile actor with a booming voice. Mike Piazza went from being a 62nd round draft pick to a Hall of Fame baseball catcher.
Commitment can change our destiny, transforming the impossible into the probable. Persistence pays off.
But only if we let it.
On February 6, 2005, the New England Patriots took on the Philadelphia Eagles in the Super Bowl.
Just a few years earlier, such a matchup in the championship game of American football would have been improbable. The Patriots and Eagles spent most of the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s as also-rans.
But fortunes had shifted with the turn of the millennium. Philadelphia had a creative head coach and an up-and-coming quarterback. And New England had Bill Belichick and Tom Brady.
Belichick was a football lifer – a champion assistant coach who had fumbled in a prior head coaching stint in Cleveland. But his fortunes had changed in Massachusetts. He took his spot on the sidelines seeking a third championship in a four-season span.
Brady was Belichick’s quarterback through that entire run of success – but an unlikely one in that. New England had selected him in the 6th round of the draft some years back, hoping he would serve as a backup signal caller. But an injury to the starter had vaulted Brady to the top spot early on, and he never relinquished the role.
Both Belichick and Brady appeared to be Deliberate Practice success stories. And yet, they somehow made the business of winning high-profile football games look easy.
Perhaps that’s why a certain commercial – shown to millions of viewers during a break in the action – seemed to fit like a glove.
The commercial was for Staples, then a dominant office supplies store. It showed a student, a rancher, a young parent, and a surgeon – all facing challenging situations. Each of them pressed a red button that read Easy on it, presumably offering a resolution.
The message was straightforward. Life could be challenging, but procuring office supplies didn’t have to be. Staples made it look as easy as New England Patriots did while winning championships.
In the months after the Super Bowl, Staples started making replicas of the Easy button. Americans put them next to their computer keyboards, leaning into the mantra.
The Easy button craze was upon us.
Two decades have passed since that iconic Super Bowl ad. But the more I hear about Generative AI – and the more I see people flocking to it – the more I’m brought back to the Easy button craze it yielded.
Having someone else tackle the difficult and the monotonous is a shared dream. It reduces friction and leaves more room for joy.
Still, there are clear dangers to this approach.
For one thing, the resource we hand off to might not prove trustworthy. This has proven true at times with Generative AI, which has committed some notable blunders.
But beyond that, ceding tasks to the machines jeopardizes deliberate practice.
Generative AI, you see, can unlock enhanced performance in a fraction of the 10,000 hours it takes us. But in doing so, it robs us of opportunities to work through problems, prove our resilience, and hone our craft.
And that’s hardly insignificant.
You’re a good writer.
My mother told me this repeatedly back in 2005.
I was in high school back then, trying to figure out my future. Getting accepted to college was the immediate goal, but then what? I had no idea what I wanted to study there, let alone what I would want to do for a vocation afterward.
My mother left those decisions to me. But she kept dropping hints about my writing prowess.
I didn’t understand the praise. Writing always felt arduous to me. And my grades on essay assignments were never exemplary.
Still, I ended up focusing on writing in college – initially as a film major and later as a journalism student. That led to three years in the news media and several more in the realm of content marketing.
As the years passed by, it was getting harder to dismiss my writing abilities. After all, that skill was now putting a roof over my head and food on my table.
Yet, I still felt the urge to perfect my craft. To practice, iterate, and grow on my own terms.
That’s what led me to launch what is now Ember Trace nearly a decade ago. It gave me a forum to share my thoughts and reflections. But it also allowed me to practice my craft, week in and week out.
This process hasn’t always been peachy. But I’m a better writer and a stronger person for it.
And that’s why I didn’t even consider clicking on that gray button in Microsoft Word and letting Copilot do the work.
Not this time. Not any time.
There’s value in honing our craft. In sticking to it and doing the dirty work.
I’m committed to that pursuit. Let’s hope that I’m not alone.