We Need to Separate Self-Worth from Work in the AI Era (time.com)

As AI adoption accelerates—driving more than 10,000 U.S. job cuts this year—the essay argues we must decouple self-worth from productivity. Drawing on a personal account, the founder of Embrace recounts burning out after a decade of 80–100 hour weeks building a low-cost infant incubator, watching the company teeter before ultimately surviving and reaching its original goal of helping one million newborns. The narrative reframes the AI disruption: the economic threat is inseparable from an existential one for cultures that equate identity with output. For the AI/ML community, the piece is a call to broaden responses beyond retraining and policy: address mental-health and identity impacts as core parts of transition planning. It recommends three concrete practices—pausing to question whether actions stem from fear, cultivating self-compassion to prevent burnout, and using “parts work” (Internal Family Systems) to surface perfectionist drives—so people can retain intrinsic value even if roles change. The implication for practitioners and organizations is clear: build systems and cultures that protect human dignity, design transitions that acknowledge psychological harm, and prioritize resilience alongside technical solutions as AI reshapes work.