tools

i’ve been listening to the audiobook version of Drownproof by Andy Stumpf. one of the useful nuggets that resonated with me is around the subject of tools. he talks about BASE jumping as a tool for him to get absolute clarity on what’s important and to silence the noise of life’s challenges. used in that way, he explained the risk was worth the reward for him in that phase of his life.

but jumping could have also easily been something else. he could let jumping be just about the dopamine rush, the accolades, the recognition. nothing that would offer him any true meaning for the risk he was taking on with a family at home. and just like so many before him, that would have likely lead to his ultimate demise. the tool would have used him.

a hammer, social media, ai, these all can be useful tools. used correctly, they’ll help you do something that would otherwise be much harder. a hammer drives a nail. social media helps you stay connected with friends and family. ai can give you a great first draft of that email you’ve been procrastinating.

but used incorrectly, a tool stops looking like a tool at all.

they can be a weapon. they can be an addiction to cheap dopamine hits and an echo chamber of mindless scrolling. or they can abdicate critical thinking and lead to brain atrophy. there are probably a million other examples, but they all come back to the same idea:

use the tools. don’t let them use you.