Can We Get Back to Basics?

 The Negligence Of A Tech-Ruled Society

We live in a world where technology is a non-negotiable in nearly every faction of our lives. From our places of work, our personal lives, and within our own homes we have quickly become a society dominated by technology. Whether it be through television, video games, streaming, podcasts, YouTube, TikTok, social media platforms, you name it - these days it feels like an endless supply of consumption. Long are the days of newspapers and paper books that have been traded in for Kindles, tablets, and cellphones. We are constantly taking in artificial light from our screens and I've started to spot the signs when my own eyes or brain need a break from it.

Since 2020, the completely devastating loss of jobs, businesses, and our economic growth as a nation, the savviness of creators being able to make a living off recording their lives grabbed society by large. More teens and young adults are aspiring to "go viral" or become an "influencer" than pursue climbing the traditional career ladder. The safety of what we now refer to as "9-5s" has become almost non-existent. I have experienced it in my own life over the last 3 years, being laid off and let go from several companies in such a short time. For many, including myself, it was a wake-up call to take action and lead the way to financial freedom themselves.

The biggest trend of all in the newest wave of technological advances has been artificial intelligence. The use of deep fakes and access to AI tools to create pictures, songs, and writings based on what already exists on the internet has society in a chokehold. Deciphering what is real or made up by AI is becoming increasingly more difficult with our own eyes. Removing creativity and individuality from humanity, artificial intelligence replaces that with different variations of what already exists.

Google is the biggest AI algorithm of them all. For years, any question we had we could ask and get an answer in seconds. So many mysteries our ancestors never had answers to are now readily available to us with a few keywords and some clicks (or taps, depending on what you are using!) The scariest thing about this is that with that instant, abundant knowledge at our fingertips instantaneously, we have lost a lot of our logical and cognitive thinking abilities. Our attention spans becoming shorter and shorter has aided in an emotional and intellectual crisis across all generations. We have seen it in the rise of the term "iPad baby," the behavior and emotional issues in children in schools, and even in grown adults who have diplomas and degrees.

In a world of Amazon Prime 2-day deliveries, instant gratification has become almost an expectation in society. In turn, so have emotion-filled outbursts and rage when expectations are not met. The new age saying "go touch grass" has been thrown around a lot in this new technological age where people are chronically online, unable to detach from the screens. The artificial and minuscule dopamine hits from scrolling, likes, and DMs are nothing compared to the vitamins and upgrades in your overall well-being from being outside in the sun.