Technology has no quality of its own. How we use it is what makes or breaks us. ~ Sadhguru
The curious thirst of human beings has made what once was impossible, possible. Today’s smartphone is nothing less than a miracle to someone from 100 years ago, isn’t it? Simply because they didn’t know “how does that work?” We tend to be ignorant about the comfort and convenience that technology has brought us, but it’s true that it’s nothing less than a miracle! From our ability to hold water in a mud container to building neural networks, our ability to yield natural forces to our will has expanded exponentially.
As the quote says, this technology has no quality of its own. It’s born out of the “search to know”—to understand how everything works, the why behind all things. My generation and a few preceding ones are fortunate to taste the fruits of technology. But we can see a stark difference in technology’s impact on human life, both constructive and destructive. The technology was the same, but someone used it for human wellbeing and someone did not.
For me, the experience with technology has always been true to this: when I was in a state of compulsion, technology had an adverse impact on me. When I’m in a conscious state of being, technology empowers me to have a constructive impact on everything and everyone around me. This experience has guided me to approach technology in a conscious and explorative manner.
When I’m in a conscious state of being, technology empowers me to have a constructive impact on everything and everyone around me.
Fortunately, I’ve nurtured the curious kid in me throughout this journey in tech, and tech has shaped the way I think and execute decisions. The joy of witnessing something you’ve built and designed impacting someone’s life is truly special. I’ve always been pragmatic about technology and my life decisions—it’s more of a top-down approach for me.
Over the years, I’ve learned where technology can and CANNOT make a difference (the second one is counterintuitive). Because once you know what a Python script can do, you want to automate your life. That’s not seeking but fixing life. Just to save time, it doesn’t work :)
Any technology is simply a tool—a tool to fulfill your purpose. If you pair that tool with a purpose, or even better, a responsibility towards your goals and objectives, now this is a potent combination.
So I start there: What’s the purpose of this technology? What’s the why behind it? How much is it’s impact? Who built this? Where in my life does this fit? What’s the cost of this technology—not just monetary, but the time and effort required to learn and use it? (Is there an open source alternative? :)
All this might seem a bit conservative for a techie like me, but I genuinely feel and have experienced the power of this approach. After discovering how computers work, how servers work, how software is made publicly available—it’s about asking the right questions rather than searching for the right answers.
It’s about asking the right questions rather than searching for the right answers.
So if you’re new to tech, start with asking the right questions. Yes, you start from “how does X work? How does Y work?” but make sure your questions are becoming deeper and deeper. Start with any chatbot— ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, etc. But it’s important to constantly think and make your questions more profound. That will only happen if you try experimenting with that technology. Don’t just read, try it out. Use technology to fulfill your thirst for knowledge, but remember to pair that experiment with a purpose.
The path of a seeker in technology is not just about accumulating skills or building impressive projects. It’s about understanding the fundamental nature of technology as an extension of human consciousness and creativity. Every line of code, every algorithm, every digital creation is a manifestation of our desire to understand, to solve, and to know.
Use technology to fulfill your thirst to know, but pair it with action rooted in inclusive intent.
All the best. 🙏