I look at it this way: if you prompted an LLM to generate it, then you didn't "do" it, you basically installed an outside piece of software that just happened to be generated on-the-fly.

I just started using it as well under a push at work. I’ve so far only used it to write out a script that I knew what I needed and how to do it but it ended up saving me a couple hours. I suppose there wasn’t an interesting problem to solve there so it makes sense to use it but I worry about relying on it since it seems just capable enough to start trusting before the rug gets pulled from under you.

Hey thanks for sharing I'm in basically the exact same boat. There are also pressures in the work place to use it because of the time savings. Personally I try to keep a balance and work on things myself most of the time and if the LLM is used it's more like a buddy coder than a magic code generation tool, but sometimes it's just too easy to use it that way. I think it's important to take pride in your work, so keep doing things your way when you want!

Creating something while not using the most efficient way possible has always been something that created the most unique, personal and opinionated results, because working on the task transforms both you and the product you are aiming for. These "inefficient" workflows also create the most useful and popular things, btw.

You are not "using the wrong tool". You are doing it for yourself, for your mental wellbeing, for a sense of purpose. Whatever the LLM spits out is not YOUR code, it is SOME code. You should really reframe this for your own good.

Late Edit: I wanted you to know i use local LLMs for my own purposes, mostly to create python scripts to automate processes. I would never claim any of the LLM output as my own creation, because it simply isn't. It's a tool to help with tasks that you could solve on your own, but aren't motivated enough to do - it has nothing to do with whatever creative output you have for yourself.

I felt that way until I just stopped using it entirely

I like to give it unnecessarily complex tasks and work on a hobby.