The Bridge #144
in which we invite you in
Hello
& Welcome ! The Bridge is a newsletter connecting the professional and the personal creatively across cultures and a diversity of topics, until we are not only full of ideas but also ready to take action. Thanks for joining in the conversation.
Inviting you to join me in conversation. If you’re a father and aren’t already a part of my Whatsapp groups, if you are curious to talk about AI anxiety and trust me to facilitate, if you are experiencing painful tensions between career expectations and personal fulfillment, or if you want to talk game design or burgeoning creativity, reply to this email. Let me know what’s alive for you.
Something to Discuss
Lately I have been hearing more and more about AI integrations at work, forced mandates to use and train AI technologies when completing tasks as a paid employee.
Gen Z workers starting their careers are generally opposed. Less than 20% polled feel “hopeful” about the future of AI. According to another recent report, nearly half of Gen Z workers said in a poll that they’re “sabotaging their company’s AI strategy in at least one way.”
Data centers (to support the processing power of AI technologies) are being built in the US with annual carbon emissions greater than that of entire countries (one data center emitting more carbon in a year than all of Morocco, for instance). This is creating understandable resistance among those who believe we ought to try and reduce carbon emissions. Also, it’s an ugly thing to have built in your backyard.
The global temperature is undeniably higher than it used to be (see the data). A leading cause: carbon emissions. Most carbon emissions come from fossil fuels, which is typically how data centers are powered. So increasing reliance on AI will heat the planet up more.
Meanwhile, money is pouring into AI-powered startups and corporate AI innovations, hundreds of billions of dollars (last year alone). Many people are making strong arguments we ought to train ourselves on AI tools to understand how they work and remain employable.
That said, the average American uses generative AI for :
summarizing “long-form” content,
settling debates,
looking up recipes, and
getting advice on a situation…
Which looks a lot like search engine usage from 20 years ago.
Maybe things aren’t changing that fast, after all.
Do we feel anxious about the changes? Or do we feel excited?
(we all know what the right answer is to these questions, but maybe there’s more to discuss under the surface.)
Something Calming
“Little Blue” by Jacob Collier
Jacob Collier is someone who might have come to your attention via youtube, as he started there as a viral sensation. His LIVE concerts often involve audience participation and dynamic genre mixing. He’s 6 years younger than me, and he’s won 7 more Grammy’s than me so far. It’s safe to say, he’s a kind-souled musical genius (who loves experimenting with the unusual), and this song… is open to interpretation, but I believe you’ll find it tearfully calming. He knows how to speak to the heart.
Something Intriguing
Sociocracy 3.0 - what a prison, a bank, and an outdoor retailer taught us (Corporate Rebels)
Corporate Rebels have been around for a little over a decade researching, building community around and supporting organizations transitioning to governance structures that share ownership and decision-making power with teams. The idea is simple: less management layers, more distributed leadership, ways of working that adapt better to changing circumstances. The number of work environments that actually implement such changes are far fewer, because the idea of “less bureaucracy” sounds good in theory but takes time and energy to figure out. A prison, a bank and an outdoor retailer near Zurich, Switzerland all have figured out ways of doing this, and they share their stories.
Don't be afraid of the dark /
In your heart /
You're gonna find a way /
To carry the weight of the world /
On your shoulders /
You're gonna find a way home /
Something to Practice
Springtime is a great time to get outside. Tell me what you see — what flowers are blooming? what birds singing? what insects buzzing?
Speak soon?
JPC