Photo: Ester Overmars
Because what if you don't exactly know what to do with AI? What if your inbox is already overflowing, your systems are crashing, and you attend meetings where you later wonder what you were doing there? Then AI feels not like an accelerator, but like extra weight. In Baaz Magazine, Lars Sørensen explains how to deal with this.
In the Netherlands, there are an estimated five million screen workers. Almost half work more than six hours a day in front of a screen. At the same time, about one in five employees experiences burnout symptoms. The correlation is not black and white, but the question is legitimate: what does our digital workload do to our learning ability, our self-confidence, and our mental space?
Digital shame is the biggest hurdle
In this personal and sharp piece, Lars Sørensen investigates the phenomenon of digital shame: the feeling that you are falling behind, that others understand it better, and that you are the one who "doesn't get it yet". He links that shame to AI anxiety; the fear that technology will outpace or even replace you.
But the core of his argument is more hopeful than the title suggests. Digital fitness is not about knowing everything or immediately embracing every new tool. It starts with honesty. Being able to say: I don't know exactly. And from that position, creating space to learn.
Sørensen advocates for psychological safety within organizations. Because learning can only happen when people feel competent, autonomous, and connected. Those are precisely the conditions that are under pressure in a digital revolution that is moving faster than our ability to adapt.
AI does not have to be a threat. But it does require a culture where asking questions is normal and development is not enforced by shame or social pressure.
In Baaz Magazine, you can read why digital shame is an underestimated theme in the AI discussion and how honesty is the first step towards true digital maturity. Never miss an edition again? Then take a subscription!
