AI Experimentation on Christa Burger

The Task Is Never the Task: AI and Hidden Workflows

Fri, 01 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

One of the most annoying things AI has taught me is that the task is almost never the task.

In fact, much of my journey with AI has been analogous to If You Give a Mouse a Cookie.

I will ask for something simple.

A grocery list. A summary. A draft. A checklist. A content idea.

Very reasonable.

Then, unfortunately, the system reveals that this “simple task” is actually attached to a much larger creature.

Wed, 22 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

One of the fastest ways to creativity with AI is to say:

“Just help with this.”

I have done versions of this professionally, personally, creatively, and domestically, with varying degrees of grace and unnecessary tabs.

The reason this works so well is because it harnesses a principle about AI — the need for specificity — and flips it to your advantage.

When AI has no clear role, it tries to be helpful in every direction at once.