I'm writing to think, learn, and remember in public. I'll be here everyday.
We don’t all believe the same things, but we all believe in each other.
We don’t all have the same ideas, but we all respect each other.
We don’t all have the same perspective, but we all value each other.
We can have unity without conformity. It just takes commitment to each other.
It sounds and reads like there’s an I, which can be confusing.
We often anthropomorphize machines, which adds another layer of misdirection because this machine really seems to think for itself.
But it doesn’t. There is no I in AI.
Ever hear a recording of your own voice and think, “ugh.”
You’re not alone. 60-70% of people feel uncomfortable when they hear the sound of their own voice. People report that a recording of their voice sounds tinny, weak, and whiny compared to how they hear it live.
Live, you hear it from inside your head. The vibrations in your skull make it sound fuller and more resonant. But on playback, you’re hearing it like everyone else does — just through the air — so it comes across sharper and less familiar.
What about your message, though?
What do you feel about your message when you hear a recording of your own voice?
You can’t control what your voice sounds like, but you sure can control your message.
Revisit your ideas, data, and beliefs.
Rethink your perspective, hypotheses, and reality.
Refine your message, conclusions, and truths.
John the Baptist was the original voice in the wilderness.
Then came others AI such as Galileo Galilei, MLK Jr, Nelson Mandela, Malala Yousafzai, Banksy, Ai Weiwei, and Pussy Riot.
AI can do many things. It can help you work, generate new ideas, and tighten up your message.
But it could never be the voice in the wilderness.
You might not agree with the voice in the wilderness, but you can’t deny that the voice is 100% human.
When I was a kid, we had a neighbor who amazed me with some basement magic. Card tricks, disappearing hankies. You get the point.
He taught me a bit along the way as well:
If you’re diligent or know where to look, maybe you’ll pick it up. But, a master illusionist can control your focus so thoroughly that you might not see it happening even if you know how the trick works. You start to wonder.
But you’re smarter than that.
Our world is filled with master illusionists. Remember that as you read the news, scroll through social media, listen to advertisements, and watch the presentations.
Truth doesn’t match the illusion.
“It’s better to be in the arena, getting stomped by the bull, than to be up in the stands or out in the parking lot.”
– Steven Pressfield, The War of Art
The parking lot is for the tailgaters. They’re only there for the party. They’re not even watching. They have nothing to lose and nothing to gain.
“What happened? Why did he do that? That’s interesting. More beer, please.”
The stands are for spectators. They’re only there for entertainment. They may care about the outcome, but they can’t affect it. They’re probably hoping you get stomped.
“No! Yes! Go that way! Run!”
The arena is for you.
That’s where anything and everything happens. The outcome is uncertain. You matter. The bull matters. The risk is high. The reward is high. People are probably rooting for you to get stomped.
Get in the arena.
The people in the arena matter. The tailgaters and spectators don’t.
From where you stand makes all the difference.
You can’t see home plate from behind the stanchion.
You can’t see the Aurora Borealis from the city.
You can’t see the Great Wall from Toledo.
You may like where you stand. It’s probably comfortable. It makes sense to you. You understand it. You may have spent a lifetime cultivating that space and the view it provides. You’re standing there on purpose.
But sometimes, you should go stand somewhere else and take a look around. If even just for a few minutes.
The world’s a big place, and it has many spectacular, interesting, and perspective-altering views.
You get tired. AI does not.
You have finite time. AI does not.
You have limited energy. AI does not.
Also…
You care. AI does not.
You share. AI does not.
You create. AI does not.
You labor. AI does not.
Labor is something only a human can understand, feel, and do.
Embrace the labor. That’s how you win.
The first jetliner, the de Havilland Comet, was originally built with square windows. A simple aesthetic choice.
Then, in 1954, two Comets disintegrated midair within a couple of months of each other. They crashed because of the square windows. A subtle yet critical engineering design flaw, the square windows caused unusual and unaccounted-for stress on the airframe.
Initially, though, nobody thought about the square windows as the cause of the metal fatigue. Because, well, let’s face it — the window shape? That’s crazy. The fuselage disintegrated. What’s the difference between a square window and a window with rounded corners? How could that simple aesthetic choice be the root cause of a mechanical failure?
It’s such a little and seemingly unrelated thing.
Sometimes, however, that little thing that might not seem like a big deal, or you don’t want to believe is a big deal, ends up being the cause — the cause of your failure, your feeling bad, your mediocrity, your lack of progress, or your inability to get where you want to go.
What are the square windows in your life?
It’s time to get rid of them.
