How do you feel about the quick rise of artificial intelligence? I have a lot of mixed emotions about it. I worry for the artists and creators it affects, I wonder what kind of long-term damage it will do to our access to reliable information, and I’ve read a lot about the negative environmental impacts from AI’s outsized energy consumption. I’ve also experienced plenty of AI “hallucinations.” But, boy do I love ChatGPT!
So, let’s embark on a little cognitive dissonance. Technological advances are often a give and take of good and bad, and I don’t think AI is any exception. I have found ChatGPT to be a valued member of my home management team, and when you ignore all of the potential societal costs, it’s technically free!
One day, I was pondering a meme I saw that said something like “We don’t want AI to make our art, we want it to wash our dishes so we can make art.” My mind began to wander — how could I get AI to do the household tasks I hate? I can’t currently get my computer to fold and put away the laundry. However, I figured out that I could use it to take some of the load off the Sunday Scaries. I’m hesitant to share, because should we all be using ChatGPT for mundane daily tasks knowing the negative impact it may have? I don’t actually know, but it also feels selfish to keep this to myself.
Meal Planning
I have never been good at meal planning, and I don’t enjoy deciding what’s for dinner over and over and over again. Did you know you can tell ChatGPT your dietary preferences and tell it what ingredients you have on hand, and it will put together a meal plan for you for the week? It won’t provide actual recipes, but it will give you guidance and help you put together a grocery list. We have a lot of allergies and dietary preferences in our family, and while it occasionally makes a mistake, it does a pretty good job of helping me get a week’s worth of meals planned and a grocery list written. What used to take me HOURS (or, if we’re being honest, what I always knew I needed to do but avoided) now only takes about 5 minutes.
READ: Escape the What’s-for-Dinner Rut: 4 Weeks of Meal Plans DONE!
Accountability & Organization
It helps me with slightly more esoteric things, as well. I tell ChatGPT what my personal values and goals are, and it helps me to make sure I am incorporating them into my daily life. I can upload the .ics file from my Google Calendar into ChatGPT, and it knows I am trying to incorporate more time for movement, creativity, and meaningful connection with my family. It puts together a schedule for me for the week that helps me organize my work and responsibilities, and fit time in for what’s really important.
Parenting Advice
My daughter has been dealing with a bullying situation for quite some time at school. The other day, she came home saying some things that were particularly triggering to me. It’s always so hard when our children come home hurting, but it’s especially hard when their hurt stirs up things that hurt us as children, too. I didn’t know how to step out of my own emotions and properly support her. (It’s not helpful to call third graders names when you are an adult.) I asked ChatGPT for some guidance. And you know what? It had great, unemotional, and practical advice for me which helped me deal with a tough situation.
Have you tried using AI to do the less glamorous tasks in your daily life? I’d love to hear other ideas of how it is being used. I assure you Chat GPT did not write this article, though.
