We're using AI to design faster. So why are we more exhausted than ever?
I shipped more designs and research last year than any other year in my 15-year career. I also felt completely drained by the end of it.
AI fatigue is real.
Here’s what I learned: AI genuinely makes tasks faster.
That design system that would’ve taken 3 weeks? Done in 4 days. Research synthesis that used to eat up a full week? Finished in a day.
So productivity up, energy up, right?
Wrong!
I was not doing less work. I was doing triple because everyone assumed I now had infinite capacity.
The worst thing was that I wasn’t actually designing anymore. I spent hours reviewing AI output:
Then I noticed something scarier.
My actual design thinking was getting weaker.
This one time (and it became a pivotal moment for me), someone asked me to walk through my process, and I’m not gonna lie, I did struggle (I did save face, but still struggled).
Not because I don’t know design, but because I had not exercised that muscle in months.
I had design thinking atrophy!
So I went back to basics. Before I tell AI what to do, I sketch on paper first. No AI. Just me working through problems the slow way.
It feels slow.
It feels inefficient.
But it keeps my design thinking sharp.
And then, I have my AI co-working sessions.
AI is a tool. A powerful one. And we need to use it in our design workflow, otherwise we’ll be left behind.
But if you’re more exhausted than ever despite being more productive, something’s wrong with how you’re using it.
Your brain needs real design thinking time, not just review time.
Your creativity needs the struggle of blank pages, not just the efficiency of AI-generated options.
So, protect your thinking time!
Exercise your design muscles.
And know when to close that AI-tool and just design. You might even experience flow state again!
Also, if you’d like to learn sketching for UX design, I have the right video for you: