This is a serious and very troubling issue for a lot of people, but at the same time an opportunity to lead the way for companies, organizations, cities, government entities. A lot can be done, apart from of just talking and writing about those issues.

Among the things which need addressing are hiring policies and modern work arragements (remote and hybrid), which contribute to social isolation and loneliness among even those of us who are employed.

I see opportunities for a massive social impact through initiatives built around education, raising consciousness, improved hiring procedures and work arragements.

This issue is directly linked to the previous one, so a smart move is to address them in tandem. More and more people turn to AI chatbots for emotional support, which in many cases leads to even more aggravated consequences. People actually believe that these chatbots can understand them better than any human would ever, and they form "relationships" with large language models instead of seeking human connection.

This is not only a problem for parents of teenagers and young people. This is our shared reality in a lot of cases, but oftentimes we are not aware of it, because it's getting harder and harder to be aware of those things. Real human connection is becoming a scarce good.

Education of people of all age groups is key in this case. Real, hands-on initiatives. We're great at talking and writing about those things, but this in and of itself will not bring change. That's why concrete initiatives and campaigns are far more important.

If people were talking about information overload in the 1970s (and they were), we could time-travel to this era and tell them that it's really nothing. Today we're beginning to lose track of what is what for real. AI generated content, AI influencers, social media bots (also AI), billions of media outlets of all sorts and all shapes and sizes, each with its own story to tell and viewpoint or advice to offer.

There is always a choice - don't consume. In reality, it's actually easier said than done, plus should this be our only binary choice - consume or not consume? How about educating people? How about changing how information is served to peolpe? As a matter of fact there are some first changes, and a lot will change in the foreseeable future.

There are concrete things we can do about it, and paradoxically AI can help us generate and brainstorm a lot of reasonable and feasible solutions. Blaming social media or AI, or both, is a sign of weakness, and lack of resourcefulness. It's also completely unproductive to begin with.

A second career after establishing your first wasn't on people's radar even two decades ago. There were some exceptions to this rule, of which pro athletes were always probably the most prominent example. Now this rule is flipped for a lot of people, and there is no going back. This has its pluses, not obviously, but is something people need to learn to live with.

As long as it's something we're not used to, it will create in us anxiety and all sorts of other difficult emotions. Let's face it, it's always hard to be the pioneers. And right now many of us will need to become just that.

The sooner those issues will be addressed the better. And they are being addressed, in books, articles, panel discussions, podcasts, and by scammers who spread more fear in order to sell all sorts of quick and easy fixes. Which means that there is a lot of room for other initiatives.

Huge topic. Many young people are completely lost in terms of their future. And oftentimes they also have their own understanding of what work means, and what it should look like. This is not a new occurrence - perhaps it's how all of us once felt, to a lesser or greater degree. History never repeats itself, but it rhymes - true.

What is unprecedented however is the amount of messages, content, media outlets and all sorts of advisers. The challenge lies in trying to do the right thing. But by whose measure? On the other hand, for the very first time in recorded history young people can leverage extremely powerful technology in virtually every possible way.

There are a lot of people and organizations with enough resources to address the lack of proper education and guidance. And some of them are doing it and are phenomenal at this. Could more people and organizations do it? Of course! It's not that they can't - it's that usually it's super hard to imagine those things in the first place.

This issue is directly or indirectly linked to all the previous ones. It's the common thread. Also the X factor. Technology is never good or bad - it's neutral. It's how we use it. It never uses us - we use it! The idea that it uses someone comes from the victimhood mentality, and this kind of mentality leads to very bad outcomes.

Technology isn't going anywhere. It is here to stay, and develop. In order to leverage it, and at the same time minimize the bad influence, we need to understand it and be able to choose how we use it.

So the first thing we need is education which isn't lagging behind. This is a real challenge, because on the one hand, technology is moving super fast, and on the other hand, inertia and victimhood mentality mess with our goal to advance as species. Which means that the other thing we need is an increased effort.