The Importance of Social Reaching Out (AI translated version)
Yap, I generated this one from my last article.
Original post:
Let me know how ChatGPT 4 did it.
Today, I’d like to talk about a topic I find crucial — expanding our social range and comfort zones.
Not everyone enjoys socializing. Some people have social anxiety, while others find social interactions insincere or have had bad experiences. This is especially true for those with a fixed circle of friends or those who don’t feel the need to make new friends due to lack of social or work-related reasons. I completely understand this. There was a time when I felt I had just the right number of friends and wasn’t interested in meeting anyone new.
However, I was eventually proven wrong.
Now, whenever someone confidently tells me they don’t want to expand their social circle, it still touches me a bit. How long can such confidence last?
Interestingly, over the past two years, I’ve felt that expanding one’s social circle has become more important than ever. Here’s my personal explanation, which can be understood on two levels:
A) The Essence of Socializing:
Expanding your social circle is inherently beneficial for personal growth, helping you discover what you like and what your strengths are. Even if your current social circle seems perfect, unexpected changes can always occur. Changes in relationships or work environments are often unpredictable, just like making new friends. Therefore, don’t be too rigid in your social beliefs. Interacting with others is the best way to encounter and understand thoughts beyond your own. After being with friends of similar backgrounds for a long time, we might develop fixed worldviews, believing “this is how the world works.” However, a simple but often overlooked truth is that “the world is not just like this.” Switch to a different culture or group, and your entire ‘world’ could be turned upside down. Maintaining a positive and healthy mindset is essential. Some people prefer to find positivity in negativity or seek comfort in similarity. Regardless, regular human interaction is beneficial for a stable and healthy mindset.
B) The Accelerating Change of Environment:
The rise of AI — This could make the essence and values of humanity more important. Resources that AI cannot replace, like genuine human interactions and personal opinions, will become more precious. Conversely, defining oneself by their job becomes riskier as many jobs can be replaced by AI. Removing professional titles, how many people would face an identity crisis? Pursuing the joy and essence of life becomes more straightforward and crucial — ordinary skills might not keep up with AI. Industry Changes — More and more people are becoming influencers or freelancers. The advent of Gen Z and Gen Alpha, along with the YOLO lifestyle, are pushing trends towards freer work styles focused on ‘happiness’ and ‘experience.’ We’ve always known that the goal of working and earning money is to live a life, but few regret ‘working too little’ in their final days; it’s usually not enjoying life enough. With time, more people remind each other of this, urging us to always pay attention to our lives. Global Information Flow — Despite the ongoing tug-of-war between liberals and conservatives, the majority of regions continue to accelerate information flow due to social media, influencers, and technologies like AI. This flow of information can lead to a shift in mindset, exposing people to thoughts beyond their original values, potentially causing self-doubt, identity crises, and the rebuilding and choosing of values. We can’t predict the individual outcomes of these environmental factors, but we can be sure that changes will happen faster than before. While this trend may not be apparent everywhere in the world, I find it quite evident. Changes in the environment make it easier to access social circles and thoughts beyond our own, sometimes even changing us passively.
The change in value systems can be refreshing, revealing a new world where what we once thought was unusual is actually quite common elsewhere. But it can also be overwhelming and hard to accept. Frankly, I was fortunate to experience burnout before starting work, due to a significant shift in my value system. This change in mindset can be instant and uncomfortable, but I learned a lot from it.
Similarly, changing your mindset can reveal a completely different world, just like a book open to everyone, where your perspective determines the chapters you see.
“Some people die at 25 but aren’t buried until 75.”
I used to think this statement was spot-on, but now I believe it may soon be overturned. A rapidly changing world no longer offers the chance for a stable, comfortable, and repetitive life for 50 years. No profession can remain the same for 50 years, nor can a mindset.
“In the future, everyone will be famous for 15 minutes.”
Likewise, this future is rapidly approaching. Even if you don’t seek fame, you might still become a pivotal influence, perhaps by sharing a video or article, or introducing someone at a gathering — these can all be factors of change.
In this rapidly changing environment, maintaining a stable mindset and being open to new things becomes more important. A stable mindset is the best capability to adapt to change. Environmental changes bring many risks and opportunities, and often, the greater risk is not taking any or emotionally rejecting these changes.
Finally, a little self-promotion: Realizing the importance of balancing work and life led me to the idea of ViBanana — a quirky name for a platform that lets more ‘little people’s’ passions be seen.
And also I’m moving to Substack, follow this if you like:
Peace ✌️
