Friction is necessary for Growth

The title of this article says it all. Overcoming friction leads to growth. Comfort leads to stagnation.

ChatGPT and by extension “AI” is likely the biggest “revolution” of my generation. It is likely also going to be the biggest killer of creativity in my generation. I always thought the creativity killer was going to be access to infinite entertainment. I think I was wrong.

I’ve come to believe that with the rise of convenience and comfort, it becomes harder for us to reach our potential. Technology and Capitalism is taking us towards an extreme.

A certain level of convenience can lead to efficiency gains. Automation is important for a reason. Too much convenience though, that's a killer. When friction was inherent in the system, applying ourselves led to growth as we overcame that friction. We simply didn’t have an alternative that was viable. And this principle applies to everything.

When I was a child in Sri Lanka, I ended up memorizing the landline numbers of all my close relatives. To this day I remember them. The moment I got a phone where my contacts could be saved, I stopped remembering numbers. It may seem like a small thing but it illustrates the principle. The ease of access to information has geared us towards efficiently looking up information instead of remembering it. I won't argue the utility of having hundreds of numbers saved on your phone, I simply want to make a point. Overcoming friction leads to growth.

Let's take another activity where creativity is important, writing. When it's easier to prompt ChatGPT to write your college essay, you'll never apply yourself. Afterall, when everyone is doing it, why not you? As everyone uses ChatGPT, the expectation of high quality writing will increase, making it harder for people to be vulnerable. You can’t become a master without making mistakes and learning from it.

Humans are creatures of comfort. Just like so many things in this world, we follow the path of least resistance. With access to technology being ubiquitous, and ChatGPT being so widely available, to choose not to use it is very hard. You need to deliberately prioritize your growth and choose to go against the current. You need to deliberately introduce friction to the process.

That said, total abstinence is not the solution. ChatGPT is here to stay. Just like most advancements in technology are. As a child of the 21st Century, you’ll need to learn to utilize this new tool in a manner that aids you, not hinders you. More importantly, not hinder the future you.