What to do about all the AI doom 'n' gloom

What else am I gonna do about it?

I’ve been dipping into some AI doom content recently.

It’s pretty good for dopamine hits when I’ve run out of “inspirational” content.

A few things seem clear:

• No one really knows what will happen

• There are countless ways that things could go very badly

• This doesn’t mean that there’s even the remotest chance that the AI industry will slow down any time soon

• What the hell am I going to do about it?!

One of my options is to keep consuming doom content (it is somewhat addictive).

Another one of my options is to ask:
What are the things that I actually can do something about?

Here’s a fun twist:
What if I still keep the AI doom scenarios in mind?

To make it even more fun:
What if I go with the most accelerated doom timelines?

What if “we’ve got” just a couple of years, or, let’s say, ‘til 2030?

For balance, I could start training the algorithmic gods to show me more of that yummy AI utopian content and run the shortest timelines on that stuff too.

Anyways, maybe we’re all gonna die real soon or maybe we’ll be fully “employed” drinking cocktails on the beach while AI robots attend to our every need.

(sometime soon!)

In either case, since I'm not an AI engineer and I don't get a vote on any of this stuff, where is the very best place that I could put my attention right now?

How does my body feel each morning when I wake up?
What kind of nourishment do I provide it throughout the day?
Could I do better?

Who do I spend my time with?
With these people do I feel alive, curious, joyful and aligned?
Or not?

How do I treat my loved ones?
Is the way I am with them right now
the way I hope they will always remember me?

How often do I allow myself to experience new things?
How flexible is my concept of who I am?
Is it time to challenge my long-held beliefs
about what I should or shouldn’t do?

You get the idea.

Obviously, I'm not the person to ask how things are going to go.

Though I will predict that our newsfeeds will continue to be filled with the drums of the apocalypse for the foreseeable future.

So what do I want to do with that energy?

What if I ignored that algorithmic frequency for a while and just focused on the most minute details of what feeds my aliveness?

If "the end is coming", wouldn't it make sense to pay more exquisite attention to what's happening for me here and now?

One flavor of the future myth is that all our jobs disappear.

So, supposing I still get fed, how will I spend my time?

I think this is actually a very good question.

Sure, the real question is:

How would 8 billion people collectively answer that question?

But that question is a lot harder to answer.

But suppose I were to go on vacation for the rest of my life -
- would I see that as a good thing or a bad thing?

If I would see it as a bad thing,
then what would have to change
for me to say it was a good thing?

If I find myself wondering
day after day
what the hell is going on
in the world
and what am I
supposed to do about it?

Perhaps
asking myself questions
like these ones
is one
of the most valuable things
I could be doing

right now.

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Sorting out the “Self” - July 15 & 16

an opportunity
to listen deeply
into the spaces in between
body, mind, heart, soul and world
so you can free yourself
to be more of who you really are.

what if paying attention
to the way you use your attention
was the best gift
you could give yourself right now?

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