If you’ve been paying attention to the headlines, you’ve probably seen the same narrative repeated over and over:

“AI is coming for your job.”

But that framing misses something essential.

What if it’s not your job that’s going away—but the busywork that’s been consuming it?

Because the truth is, for a long time, many of us haven’t been doing our most meaningful work.

We’ve been doing paperwork.

We’ve been processing.

We’ve been manually updating, tracking, entering, transferring, logging, and following up.

We’ve been spending our days on things that need to get done—but not necessarily by us.

And now, for the first time in a long time, that’s starting to change.

**The Real Work vs. The Routines We’ve Normalized**

Most jobs—especially in public agencies, small businesses, and legacy organizations—carry more behind-the-scenes labor than anyone wants to admit.

* HR directors spending hours each week formatting reports

* Program managers manually updating spreadsheets

* Administrative assistants sorting through backlogged email chains

* Case workers duplicating data between systems that don’t talk to each other

None of this is strategic. None of it is visionary. But it’s the stuff that keeps operations moving. Or at least—it used to be.

Now, intelligent systems are starting to take those tasks off our plates.

And while that might feel uncomfortable at first, it could be one of the most liberating shifts in the history of modern work.

**The Emotional Side of Letting Go**

Here’s where it gets tricky.

Many of us have spent years—decades—defining our value through the lens of “how much we can get done.”

So when we’re told that part of our job can be automated, it doesn’t feel like a gift.

It feels like an insult.

A threat.

A sign that we’re replaceable.

But here’s another way to look at it:

What if your job isn’t being taken away—just finally being cleared off?

What if automation gives you more time to focus on what actually matters—like strategy, mentorship, creativity, decision-making, or public service?

Because for most of us, busywork was never the goal.

It was just what filled the space.

**A Shift in Value—Not in Worth**

The most forward-thinking organizations aren’t replacing people with AI.

They’re reimagining how their people spend their time.

They’re asking:

* What should our teams be focusing on now that the tedious tasks are offloaded?

* Where can we deploy our human attention more effectively?

* How do we move from input-based performance (hours, output) to outcome-based performance (impact, quality)?

This shift doesn’t mean people become less valuable.

It means they become too valuable to waste.

**For Leaders: What to Watch For**

If you’re in a leadership role—especially in New Mexico’s government agencies or small businesses—start by identifying the busywork that’s still hiding inside your operations.

Ask:

* What tasks are repeated every week that follow a script?

* What workflows rely on copy-paste labor?

* Where are your smartest people spending time on lowest-leverage tasks?

And then ask:

What could we accomplish if we took that weight off their shoulders?

**Final Thought**

The end of busywork isn’t the end of work.

It’s the beginning of a more human-centered, purpose-driven model for how we spend our time.

Not everything can be automated.

But a lot of what should be—can.

And when we stop clinging to repetition as proof of value, we can finally start doing the work we were meant to do.