Could 2024 be the year of positive intelligence?

Elon Musk and Co. talk about artificial intelligence as if it were about technology. In fact, it's about quality of life.

As far back as I can remember, it was important to be one of the “toughest knives in the drawer.” be clever. In school, we were mostly rewarded for being smart, not kind.

As a journalist, it was a great honor to be told that Sharp pen. It was about having strong opinions, sharp analysis, and hard facts.
But what happens in a society where we walk around like gangs of “sharp knives”? It looks scary. the He is scary. Social debate is a scary place. It can be a pretty average place, even. Many of us are more secure than we like to admit.

Our children are afraid too. Some children feel so sad that they avoid places there Sharp knives He is perfect. Many simply do not dare to go to school. This also applies to teachers, and we understood this during the fall semester.

What if we shifted our focus from sharp knives in 2024? What if we developed it too The largest scoop of porridge Or that The softest pillow on the sofa? People who create safety for others. Who listens and learns. Who cares more about doing what's right than getting what's right?

The most intelligent man in the world

“We were collectively relying on his intelligence,” the journalist said. Susan B. Glaser In the New Yorker magazine after the recent death of Henry Kissinger – and she meant dependency in an unhealthy way.

The intensely influential American politician died in the same year that artificial intelligence moved in earnest into businesses, schools and social discussions around the world. It's an irony.

Could it be that the kind of intelligence represented by Kissinger is no longer attractive to us humans? Are there other types of intelligence that are more useful for us to develop now?

What kind of skills and abilities do you think we humans need to solve the major societal problems we face: addiction, poverty, bullying, fear of school, loneliness, greed, and conflicts?

What does it take to create a community that facilitates a good and safe life for children, youth and adults?

From brain to heart

The signals from many of the world's leading universities are beginning to become clear. Just listen to what the president of Columbia University in New York said He says:

“Before, our functions were about the muscles. Today everything revolves around the brain. Tomorrow they will be about the heart,” says Minouche Shafik.

When technology and machines make us comfortable at scale, our jobs will revolve around what is unique to us as humans.

How to regulate and normalize emotional discomfort? What can we do to increase joy and courage in difficult times? How do you listen carefully to others, without thinking too much about what we will say next?

There are many indicators that what we have long considered “vulgar,” such as emotions and relationships, may become our most important job skills in the future.

Lou and Specter are on the field

What are our most important job skills in the future? Analyst firm inFuture posed the question to 220 managers at Spekter companies and 70 to 80 store managers at LO Stat.
Results It was surprisingly agreed by managers and union representatives:

1. Creative power – Access to creativity and problem-solving skills.
2. Information literacy – The ability to find relevant knowledge in a sea of ​​information.
3. Deepen – Ability to concentrate and work past Point of boredom In learning and training.
4. Social competence – The ability to communicate and interact well with others.

The final conclusion was that the most important job skill of the future is to be Humanity.

Taste it a little. What does it mean to be human? Isn't it a bit like the journey from mind to heart in social life, as Minouche Shafik of Columbia University talks about?

Insecurity is costly

Imagine walking into a conference room at work and instantly feeling unsafe when you see who's there. This psychological insecurity is directly costly and debilitating. Bard Finn sayswhich investigates feelings of psychological security at the Norwegian School of Economics in Bergen.

Confidence is a prerequisite for learning and daring new things. This applies to schools and workplaces, and applies to participation in social debate.

One challenge is that we humans were not created primarily for security: we were created for survival. We are equipped with a mind that is hyper-alert to risks, which is also reflected in the controversy surrounding artificial intelligence.

The good news is that a sense of security can be developed, just like the capacity for joy, courage, and caring. Psychology is on its way into schools for good reason.

Human warming

“Communication technology only becomes socially interesting after it becomes technologically boring,” says American technology writer Clay Shirky.

It will likely take a few years before AI becomes technologically boring, but let's use these years for trial and error – hacking the fear center of the brain with gratitude and finding good solutions together.

No wonder we are afraid of artificial intelligence, but fear is not enough. On the contrary, anxiety and fear can hinder us from developing and using technology in an intelligent and responsible way.

May we learn how to use technology well this year, so that we can do acts of care and humanity. Global warming starts, so our children look forward to going to school.

Perhaps 2024 will be the year we start the mind-to-heart journey seriously in school and professional life – and develop our abilities suitable Intelligence?

Then we need all our sharp knives, wide scoops and soft pillows. We need each other, all of us.