Why AI is a Tool for Thinking

We’ve all heard the phrase ‘thinking outside the box,’ but what about ‘thinking outside the brain’?

I came across this idea while reading Annie Murphy Paul’s The Extended Mind, a book that explores how we don’t just think in our heads—we think with our bodies, our environments, and our tools. I picked it up because I had a feeling it would connect to what we teach so many of our clients and learners: that Generative AI isn’t about taking shortcuts or producing generic, personality-free content. It’s about expanding how we think.

The best way to use AI isn’t to hand off your ideas and hope for a perfect result—it’s to develop a working relationship with it, treating it like a flexible, adaptable collaborator. Give it a vision, and it can help you expand, rework, research, or refine your ideas in ways you wouldn’t have done alone. The more context you provide—what you care about, what you’re trying to create, what matters to you—the more useful AI becomes.

Instead of just spitting out a finished product, it can help you unearth the true potential of an idea—turning a spark into a draft, a plan, an outline, a script, or even just a holding space for ideas in progress, something you can return to and refine over time.

Curious to Try It? Here’s How to Start

If you want to get beyond the productivity mindset and start thinking with AI in a way that actually fuels your creativity, here are three simple prompts to try:

1. “I’m exploring [a topic or idea]. Challenge my assumptions and offer me three alternative ways to think about it.”
2. “I have this half-formed idea: [describe your idea]. What are some ways I could develop it further?”
3. “Rewrite this in a completely different tone—one that’s playful, one that’s poetic, and one that’s concise and direct.”

Instead of looking at AI as just a tool for getting things done faster, try thinking of it as a tool for thinking better. The real magic happens when you bring your own ideas and curiosity to the process—and let AI help you push them further.