Tomorrow, my weekly Codex quota resets.

I opened the dashboard and found that, surprisingly, more than seventy percent was still left. My first reaction really was a pang of regret. So today's task list suddenly grew. The portfolio website needed more work, there was research I could do, and the ideas that had been accumulating recently could become a few more articles to publish gradually later.

These things were already on my long-term list. If the quota weren't about to reset, I'd probably finish one before starting the next. Now I'd called them all in early and lined them up for today.

Today I read Khazix's piece about AI organizations. He raised an interesting question: where does the time AI saves us actually go?

My answer today is a little funny. That time didn't turn into rest. It was quickly filled with the portfolio, research, and articles. In my one-person business, I'm both the boss and the employee. The faster AI runs, the person assigning me more work is still me.

What I had expected

AI would save me time, and that time could become rest.

What actually happened

New tasks quickly filled the time I saved. I was still the one giving myself more work.

Still, I don't regret upgrading to Pro 20X.

When I was on Plus, I had already run into the quota limit. I wanted to keep working on my mini program and website, but the quota wouldn't let me keep going in one stretch. I had to wait until the next week. Taking things slowly day by day would have been fine, but right now I wanted to get several projects from nothing to a working first version in a concentrated period. Stopping halfway through the framework to wait for more quota was a rhythm I found hard to bear.

So I allowed myself a building phase of one or two months. First, I'd get the mini program, portfolio website, and some work requiring a lot of design and organization moving. Once those projects reached routine maintenance, I'd see whether Plus could handle them or whether another tier made more sense.

"I really like the feeling of having plenty of quota."

If an article sparks an idea, I can immediately hand it to Codex to organize while I carry on reading. While the website is being worked on in the background, I can do something else. Before, I would pause before giving an instruction and ask whether the task was worth the quota it would use. With less of that hesitation now, many ideas that pop into my head finally get a chance to become something I can see.

It's a bit like buying art supplies. Within my budget, I'm usually willing to make sure I have the paper, paints, and tools I regularly use. Then, when a painting doesn't work out, I can't keep wondering whether the paints aren't good enough. I have to come back to my own observation, judgment, and practical skills.

"Once the tools are sufficient, it's easier to turn my attention back to myself."

Of course, abundance brings a small problem of its own. As the reset approaches, I start seeing the remaining quota as an unfinished meal. Since I've already ordered it, I want to finish as much as I can, and enjoy it too. The tool that was meant to do work for me quietly starts influencing how I schedule my tasks.

Fortunately, today's tasks weren't things I invented on the spot. They needed doing anyway; the quota reset just nudged them forward. And Codex can work in the background. I don't have to sit there through the entire process. It works on the website while I keep reading. If something I read brings another idea, I hand over the next task.

This is also my first week since upgrading. I'd thought a few hours of website work would use a lot of quota. After actually doing it, I found the consumption wasn't as high as I'd imagined. How much quota does a website, a round of research, or a session organizing knowledge really take? It's hard to develop a feel for that from guides alone. Part of what a subscription gives you is experience.

If there's still plenty left tonight, I can accept that. At least the number tells me something about how much work to schedule next week, and helps me judge whether this plan suits me.

I've given this upgrade a simple time limit. I'll use it for one or two months to get several projects off the ground. When the building phase ends, I'll decide what comes next based on what I've completed and how much I've actually used. When I need to move at full speed, I'll give myself more generous tools. Once things move into maintenance, enough is enough.

If you're also unsure whether to upgrade an AI plan, you could first write down two or three projects you truly want to finish, then set an end date for the upgrade. When that day comes, look at what you've completed and how much quota is left. Staring at the plan specifications alone makes it hard to know whether it suits you.

I still don't know whether I can take that seventy-plus percent down below ten percent tonight.

"What I'd rather find out is,

when quota temporarily stops being a concern, how many of my ideas can I actually turn into things?"

The views, experiences, and final judgments in this article are the author's. AI assisted with organizing the text.