Life after ChatGPT (#28)

The ability to think is a privilege. To remember, to reason, to review, and to restrain are divine assets that only a human being enjoys.

Or at least one thought so till #ChatGPT came around.

Almost everyone now is in the know. Most, if not all, know its a paradigm shift. Many, if not most, realise it true potency. #ChatGPT could be that epochal event that starts a whole new era. Its not a could. It is - if you ask me.

But I will leave room for healthy scepticism. There are many a factors that decide a fad from a future. #ChatGPT could end up being a fad too. But as days go by, this does seem quite unlikely.

From digital art to generative AI, the world as we know it is changing. I am certain that the job I and many of us hold today would cease to exist in its current form and shape very soon. That is not necessarily a bad thing, in fact it could be an opportunity for many who have been stuck in jobs whose design happened decades ago.

It is one thing to be in a comfort zone doing what we had learnt for years. There is a certain confidence and calmness that a stable job brings in our lives. But when it gets too comfortable, something goes missing; a certain spark. #ChatGPT and the disruption that ensues, could be a chance to breathe life into our mundane, professional lives.

And with that I, by no means, advocate a want for constant change. To have a stable job is a good thing. To master a craft for years, and develop a sense of calmness & equanimity is a blessing. In fact, unless and until one puts through years of work in a given profile, learning is elusive. The younger lot today miss to see this. Their attitude towards work is profound, but superficially. They seek meaning in what they do - which is a noble pursuit to have.

But they often miss the forest for the trees.

Meaning, I beg to share, comes only in time. A mind that seeks meaning must be a mind that is patient. Meaning at work is a discovery - one that comes after many phases. A series of succeeding phases that starts from confusion, disappointment, dejection, failure, to success, and monotony; meaning surfaces after all that. Meaning seems to come from what we do externally. But in reality, it is something that happens internally. This understanding comes in time - only in time.

And there are many who have mastered monotony. It is not a bad thing for them, in fact it is what they seek, especially after years of struggle and perseverance. But too much of monotony may not be good thing too.

It is not a good thing because it goes against the fine principle of life - change. Such a hackneyed argument to make? one may think. But the context here demands it. A monotonous work life, for all its flaws and beauty, is always going to come to an end. That end will not be pleasant - no matter when and how it comes. For many in the past, retirement happened to be the time and means of its arrival. For many of us now, #ChatGPT could play that role. Let us welcome the disruption that we are about to see. And let us be prepared.

For me, #ChatGPT is a chance to be reborn. And a birth always comes with pain. But it also comes with endless possibilities.

And isn't that a beautiful thing?

Wishing you a wonderful week.