Are robots taking over? Why creativity will always be our human superpower

+ a special note from our co-founder and Chief Well-being Officer, Katina

Hey there,

Katina here 👋🏽 We’re doing things a bit differently this week at Daydreamers, and I’m taking over our Head in the Clouds channel for today’s note.

If we haven’t met, I’m our co-founder + Chief Well-being Officer. Basically, that’s a fancy way of saying that I get to think about how our creative brains impact our mental health all day, every day. And lately, my mind has been non-stop wondering why it feels like robots are taking over.

Before we get into why I actually have hope that this never-ending Black Mirror episode is good for our shared humanity, I want to share something special with you all. Even though Daydreamers isn’t live to the public yet, we finally have capacity to welcome more members into our Early Access crew. We’ve changed hundreds of lives so far, and we’re literally barely at the starting line 🛸

In order to join us, you’ll get to have a well-being chat with me before starting your journey. Normally this is only something you get access to if you jump the line, but we’re feeling festive. There are only a limited amount of spots on my calendar available, so make sure to grab your 10-minute chat before they’re gone.

And plus, I’ll be sharing signed copies of my book, On Adulting, with those in our Head in the Clouds crew who become part of the Daydreamers Universe before the new year. This book was the genesis of what we’re building at Daydreamers, and an entrypoint into living a more creative, curious life.

I can’t wait to catch up and get to know you more. Get on my calendar here:

Now, for the fun part: Are robots really taking over?

If you’ve haven’t been tuned in to the tech newscycle lately, kudos to you 🤖 With the release of ChatGPT, AI photos galore + headlines like “Is ChatGPT a ‘virus that has been released into the wild’?” everyone is making it seem like we’re living through a time of Frankenstein-esque wonder (or horror).

As a clinical psychology researcher, I have a different POV: our naturally creative brains are literally what separates us from machines. And, they’re the only thing that will continue to propel us forward into a new, likely even better, world.

I see this as a wake-up call for us all to use our human creativity for what it’s really meant to do: Help us genuinely connect - here’s why.

Our creative wiring is nearly 70,000 years old. Tens of thousands of years ago, our human brains had an unexpected cognitive mixup that led to the start of our uniquely human trait - creativity.

But, this transformative blip wasn’t just a nice part of our evolution. Its core to our survival.

Our creative genetic mutation gave us a new-found ability to imagine futures that didn’t yet exist, tell stories as a form of connection, and create communities based on common beliefs. When we look at it from a scientific perspective, the root of creativity isn’t even necessarily about progress or innovation. Surprisingly, it’s about how we connect with ourselves and others.

In the most basic sense, our creative brains allow us to build relationships with ourselves, our communities and the world writ large. When we create, we release a powerful mix of neurotransmitters - dopamine, serotonin and oxytocin - that allow us to feel more in tune with any member of humanity.

And, even when we’re just absorbing others’ creativity, it’s a form of collective meaning-making. Think about the way it feels to sway in sync at a concert alongside strangers, or tune in to a weekly TV show like White Lotus - we’re part of something bigger than ourselves.

While robots might be able to describe it, our ability to notice beauty + experience transcendence will never go away, regardless of how advanced machines become. Those feelings are a human thing.

Most importantly, creativity isn’t just about writing a best-selling novel or making a beautiful picture. Robots can do that. It’s about translating our emotions into something meaningful, and using our ability to dream of non-existent things as forward momentum. All we have to do is ask: What if…?

As the world changes, we can view these shifts as a positive thing, because it’s giving us space to create more - together. And, while everyone is out there trying to make robots more like humans, at Daydreamers, we’re here to help us humans be less robotic. Ready to join us?

I can’t wait to truly connect with you soon -

Katina

+ Dupi and the entire team @ DD HQ

For a limited time only, get access to a free call with our co-founder, Katina, in order to sign up for what we’re building at Daydreamers. It’s time to enhance - and most importantly use - our naturally creative brain for good:

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An idea to noodle on 💭

Creativity is something robots can never take away

THINK ON THIS: As social creatures, our creative brains give us the capacity to connect deeply. It was once thought that we could only build bonds between mother and child, but our storytelling ability allows us to do so between any member of the human species. How’s that for a superpower?

…MAYBE NOT THAT: Robots can only imagine what is not what if. The core of our creativity is our ability to ask a simple question - what if things could be different? That facet of imagining a future that doesn’t exist is uniquely human and drives us forward as a species. Robots look backwards, whereas creativity is forward momentum. Let’s keep enhancing our progress.

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Inside our brains at DD HQ  🧠

These teens who are boycotting the Internet by using flip phones instead are our *literal* inspiration. Why is the White Lotus theme song giving us all the feels? Speaking of - an interesting deep dive into tech, music + the future of ‘creativity’. Oh yeah, remember when we shared how we can warp time? This podcast episode goes deep on the neuroscience of time expansion.