Just a few years back when my dad used to look at me and tell me how I’ve got it all easy and in their generation they had to work so hard for everything, I used to always get mad. Like isn’t that the whole point? Their generation worked hard for us to have a better life, right? But now there’s this unsettling worry that have in the back of my head. Let me explain. Digital progress is great, no doubt about that. It has promised us no more of lengthy tedious tasks. Everything can be accomplished in seconds just with the help of one good prompt. What took us 20 mins, 3 years back, takes us less than 40 secs now. Most of this is great, but are we unknowingly letting all of our skills fade?
IMPACT OF AI ON DIFFERENT AGE GROUPS
AI has become our digital companion for every little task. Up until November, 2022 we did all the difficult tasks by ourselves, solved problems by gathering information and with the help of the limited digital aid. But for the adolescents of this generation? AI is the norm. They do not take a single decision without consulting with ChatGPT first. While on the other hand adults who are over 45 years use AI as a replacement to Google. All of this was revealed by Sam Altman in an interview.
REWIRING OUR BRAINS
Did you know our brains are like clay and can rewire themselves? This is called neuroplasticity. So, basically every time we learn something new, practice a new skill, or even image doing something, our brain reshapes itself. If we don’t give our brains enough mental stimulation, our thinking abilities can decline. But if we do, we will literally restructure the architecture of your brain, in a way we’ll building mental roads, bridges, and skyscrapers.
Pretty cool, right?
Studies show that there’s a need for active mental stimulation, if we don’t give our brain that we can see a noticeable drop in brain activity in key areas. So, if AI constantly helps us in every task we have to do, it’s actually not helping us in the long run. We’ll be depriving our brains from the healthy workouts that it needs to stay active and healthy.
REGAINING CONTROL AGAIN
Control is your ability to affect the outcomes of your life. While, agency on the other hand is the free will you have in making those decisions. With AI rapidly taking over our lives, we are losing to the erosion of control and agency. And what’s even scary is how we don’t even realize or notice all of this happening, the losing of power and control. We see what we’re fed, algorithms are taking over our lives and our brains. I’ve covered all of this in True Stories That Reveal the Dark Side of ChatGPT Hallucinations. This phenomenon can also be explained better with the concept of learned helplessness. It’s Seligman’s theory of depression which talks about how people who have no control over their environment can become less motivated, have trouble thinking, and feel emotional distress. The answer for all of this? We can’t let AI take over everywhere. We have to stay in control, we have to make decisions and not let AI make them for us.
PSYCHOLOGICAL IMPACT
We feel tired, burnout, anxious and helpless. When your life is run by alerts, reminders, algorithms, and infinite content, it can feel like you’re never truly off or in control. Digital burnout is real! And we feel powerless, stuck. For every small inconvenience we are wired to turn to AI for help. What can you do? Look out for the following signs-
- You check your phone without thinking.
- You rely on AI for all your news and updates.
- You feel burned out but can’t stop scrolling.
- You make decisions based on urgency rather than reflection.
- You feel like you’re not “steering” your own life.
OUR RESPONSIBILTY
We are the last analogue generation, everyone after us will always have AI from the time they’re born. It’s like our responsibility to make sure they don’t fall into this loop. We cannot let our minds shrink. How can we help? What should we do? We can’t let our mind go autopilot when technology takes over. Before diving into AI for answers, ask yourself first. Think of it like you’re making your brain stronger with each problem you present it. We have to stay present and focused instead of jumping from screen to screen, and make time for real conversations that challenge us and connects us with others. It’s not about rejecting AI. It’s about making sure you stay the one in charge.
