Efficiency is good

Efficiency is good. Insight is better.

Last week, I spoke to a group of healthcare leaders about AI in marketing. I wasn’t totally sure where the presentation would land. But it did. A little bumpy, but the wheels touched down.

Here’s where we ended up: ➡️ Efficiency is good. Insight is better.

I love a shortcut. I’ve spent 25 minutes automating a task I could’ve done manually in five, All because I didn’t want to do something that felt tedious. And sometimes, that’s fine. Speed has its place.

But other times, the shortcut skips the part where I learn something. It skips the struggle, the thinking, the connecting of dots.

It’s not just AI. It’s templates, snippets, swipe files, frameworks. They’re tools. And like any tool, their value depends on how we use them.

Lately I’ve been asking myself: Am I saving time so I can think more clearly? Or am I just rushing to feel done?

Because the real lightbulb moments don’t usually come from speeding up. They come from slowing down. From letting ideas simmer a bit. From giving myself space to actually understand what I’m doing.

And yes, occasionally, that clarity waits to show up in the shower the next morning.

Saving time is great. But understanding is often worth the extra struggle.

There are times when you just need to knock something out. But there are other times when “getting it” matters more than just “getting it done.” And it’s those insights I don’t want to miss.