In today’s fast-paced world, staying focused and intentional can feel like an impossible task. Studies show the average person only does 11 minutes of deep work a day, and we change our intent or focus roughly every 90 seconds. With all these distractions, it’s no wonder many of us struggle to maintain a sense of direction throughout the day.
This constant cognitive shifting makes the case for something I’ve been thinking about for a while: using AI to build a baseline avatar of self—not a system that’s always monitoring you, but a reference point you can come back to. It’s like having a mirror for your goals, behaviors, and decisions, helping you navigate the day with more consistency.
Why Build a Baseline Avatar?
It’s easy to feel scattered when our minds are pulled in a hundred directions. A baseline avatar is a way to anchor yourself. It’s a tool you can reference at any point in the day to reconnect with your core objectives, productivity patterns, and behavioral tendencies. This avatar isn’t about tracking your every move. Instead, it’s a reflection of your optimal self based on who you know yourself to be. Think of it as a guide, something you can turn to when you feel off-course or unfocused.
By using AI to build this baseline, we can create a framework for how we work best: when we’re most productive, what distracts us, and what kinds of environments allow us to thrive. Throughout the day, when we feel our attention drifting or motivation waning, this avatar becomes a resource we can lean on to help us refocus.
Anchoring Yourself in Real Time
Let’s say you’re halfway through your day and suddenly feel like you’re losing focus. Instead of struggling to get back on track, imagine being able to pull up a snapshot of your baseline avatar—a representation of what your best working conditions look like. Maybe it reminds you that you’re most productive in the morning, or that deep work sessions are most effective in short bursts followed by a break.
This isn’t AI monitoring you—it’s you using AI as a touchstone for your own best practices. You don’t need to constantly check in, but when you do, you’re presented with insights on how to re-align your day with your optimal self. The avatar becomes a self-coaching tool that lets you get back on track quickly and efficiently, without overthinking it.
Practical Self-Reference for Growth
Building this baseline avatar is a powerful way to bring consistency into your life, without relying on guesswork or reactive decision-making. By feeding AI your working habits and tendencies, you can create a reference point that helps you identify patterns of success. And instead of monitoring every move, you can proactively check in with it throughout the day to help optimize your behavior in real time.
For example, if you’re facing a difficult decision or feeling unproductive, referencing this avatar can remind you of what’s worked in the past: “What did my best day look like?” or “When do I perform best on this kind of task?” Over time, these insights compound, and what was once a reactive, distracted day becomes a more intentional, guided one.
AI as a Guideline, Not a Tracker
Think of this avatar like a guidewire—something you can hold onto when you need direction. It’s not following your every step, but it’s always there when you need to course-correct or check your bearings. This approach to AI lets you keep control over your actions and decisions, while giving you access to deeper insights whenever you need them.
In a world where distractions are constant and mental energy is finite, having a self-designed baseline avatar offers a sense of clarity. It becomes a tool you can reference, adapt, and rely on throughout your day, helping you stay in touch with your true potential and goals.