Khaberni - Using generative artificial intelligence in writing might be an excellent strategy to save time and effort; writing demands a lot from both.
Therefore, it makes sense that writing tasks account for 24% of "Chat GPT" usage, according to the "Chat GPT" user report issued by its developer "Open AI", making it the most common topic in user interactions.
However, not all writing tasks are equal, as while artificial intelligence can be useful in some, it can have adverse effects in others.
Here are four questions to help you determine whether using artificial intelligence is beneficial for a specific writing task, or if there's a good reason to do it yourself, according to a report by "Forbes" reviewed by "Arabia Business".
Will using generative artificial intelligence in writing really save time and effort?
Using "Chat GPT" or other conversation-based artificial intelligence tools to accomplish writing tasks does not actually eliminate your need to write yourself, rather the writing task shifts from one type of output - an email, proposal, introductory letter - to crafting an effective AI request, which requires effort.
Often, good requests are made up of paragraphs, not single sentences. And preparing a request that produces useful outputs from artificial intelligence - outputs that reduce the need for editing and achieve your goals and those of your readers - takes time, effort, and ongoing practice.
Ask yourself whether using artificial intelligence for the current writing task will save you time, or whether it shifts the time you would have spent on one writing task to a different task. Consider that if you're an experienced writer and a novice user of artificial intelligence, using AI for writing might cost you more time and effort than doing it yourself.
Will using artificial intelligence in writing increase work for your colleagues later?
If you're not careful, assigning a writing task to artificial intelligence could pass it on to a colleague or client; as it might produce poor quality work, or content that superficially looks good but lacks substance.
Your responsibility is to check the quality of AI outputs before sending them to anyone else. In other words, you need to edit the content to match your organization's quality standards.
If you do not have the time to properly review the content before sending it, it is likely that the next person to read it will need to spend time and effort understanding the meaning of the text and then correcting it. Therefore, consider that the output from artificial intelligence slows down the project schedule, confuses or misleads your colleagues or clients and creates negative tension between you and your team.
Do you need to remember the content you produce or conduct detailed discussions about it?
In a fast-paced work environment, the superior capability of AI to formulate texts, summarize, and extract key points is a highly attractive feature.
For instance, if you are preparing a summary of routine meeting notes for colleagues who were unable to attend, why not use a time-saving tool? In this case, your responsibility is limited to documenting the information for the benefit of others, and AI tools can make this task much faster and easier.
On the other hand, if you attended a conference on a groundbreaking advancement in your field and are tasked with educating your colleagues at the head office, it might be beneficial to summarize the information obtained in the traditional manner.
Research shows significant neurological benefits to writing, especially hand-writing, which activates several brain areas linked to motor control, sensory perception, and cognitive processing. Studies have shown that this method of writing leads to a deeper understanding and better retention of information.
Although writing by yourself is slow, this slowness is part of what makes the process cognitively beneficial. When you consider using AI tools to delegate a specific writing task, ask yourself whether the shortcuts are worth it, or if you could gain something important by taking enough time to complete it.
Are you considering using AI for writing about private or confidential information?
Be careful when entering texts into generative AI tools for editing that include confidential or proprietary original content, as tools like "Chat GPT" and "Cloud" adjust privacy settings so that these tools do not retain your data.
Some companies have strict policies on the use of AI, which define what you can and cannot enter into an AI tool. Meanwhile, other companies have developed custom AI tools for internal use, protecting the system: the tool is trained on internal (and appropriate) datasets, and your inputs remain within the system.
When you work alone, and there is no "official company policy" to rely on, you must evaluate this yourself. Many authors, for example, include clauses in their contracts and books that prevent the use of texts for training artificial intelligence. If you are creating original texts, then put them in artificial intelligence for assistance in refining, editing, or style adjustment, you should study the consequences of this and establish well-considered standards for your use.
