Going Down the Rabbit Hole

It seems that today all we hear about is AI in the tech industry. This makes me think about where we are as a society as a whole. Are we willing to give up any semblance of privacy in the name of “convenience”? I think it’s safe to say the answer is a resounding YES.

So how did we become so, dare I say, lazy? When did we start spending more time searching for a way out of doing something instead of just doing it? And finally, what is this teaching our kids?

I think a lot of the answer comes down to this: when we want to “make life better” for our family, we forget how good life already was when we were young. Sure, we watched our parents work themselves to the bone to make ends meet. We saw them pour their heart and soul (or so we thought) into providing for us, and we decided we would do better. In doing better, we chased the dream of a more leisurely life. We started chasing convenience at any cost. That chase became an obsession.

I was recently sent a YouTube video that comically described the mind of Generation X. Yes, I’m part of that generation. While I don’t agree with all of it, there were one or two points I completely agree with. First, we’re the last generation, so far, that knows what it means to be truly bored. We have the ability to be, dare I say, safe within our own thoughts. We can be still and find joy in the stillness. Second, we’re the last generation to know what true privacy is, before everything was posted for the sake of screaming “look at me.”

So what does all of this mean? What’s the point of it all? I don’t know. And “I don’t know” is probably one of the most memorable phrases in my life. It takes humility and honesty to say those three words. It’s also completely acceptable to say them. We can’t know everything, all the time. The key is to admit that, and ask for help. It’s also a good skill to be able to discern a good response from a bad one.

That last point brings me all the way back to the opening of this post — the one about AI. AI can be a very useful tool. It can’t replace hard work and knowledge gained through experience. AI is not infallible. If you don’t know something and you ask AI, how do you know the response it gives you isn’t just smoke being blown up your… You need some basic skills of your own to determine if and when to question AI’s response.

With all of this said, stay safe, and remember: it’s okay to be bored. It’s okay to be alone with your thoughts. Put down the tech and be in the moment. Enjoy the people around you, and have conversations without messaging.