AI & Critical Thought: Does it dull or sharpen us

AI is everywhere right now. It’s shaping how we draft, plan, analyze, and execute across industries. But the real question isn’t whether it will impact our work, it already has. The real question is: Will it erode our ability to think, or will it push us to think better?

Critical thought has always been my North Star. It’s what separates responsible strategy from lazy shortcuts, and lasting success from one-hit wonders. My concern, and I think many share it, is that if we lean on general AI without intention, it risks dulling that muscle. If we let it hand us outputs without questioning the “why” or “how,” we lose the very skill that makes us human: the ability to reason, connect dots, and challenge assumptions.

But here’s the flip side: when used properly, AI tools can actually accelerate critical thought. Instead of replacing our thinking, it stretches it. It puts multiple perspectives in front of us faster, sharpens the variables in a decision, and highlights blind spots we might have missed. In this way, AI doesn’t erode, it amplifies.

That’s the balance I aim for at Clickaroo. AI isn’t there to think for me; it’s there to make me think harder, faster, and better. It lightens the mental load of repetitive or lower-value tasks, freeing up bandwidth to focus on strategy, nuance, and the human side of marketing, the things that actually move people.

We’re at a crossroads. AI can be a trap, or it can be a tool. The difference comes down to how we use it. With curiosity, humility, and a commitment to critical thought, it doesn’t make us less human. It makes us more.