Consider: When you feel as though you're "walking on eggshells" around a person, do you mean you're worried they're going to yell at you if you upset them, or do you mean you don't know how not to insist on being the center of their attention at all times?

Once, I was outside with my older brother (he was an adult by that time, I was not) while he played with his remote control car. It was one of those nice ones enthusiasts race at tracks on the weekends, rather than your garden variety toy car. At one point he aimed it right at me and sent it forward at full speed. It crashed into my leg, leaving a small, bleeding wound. He was equal parts apologetic and astounded that I'd held my ground. He told me later that he'd been expecting me to move at the last second, and I told him that I'd expected him to swerve before hitting me. Our understanding of each other never improved beyond the point of identifying our mismatched expectations. He died a few years later, as much a stranger to me as he'd ever been.

"AI" is a marketing term, and I'm not buying. However, I will endorse "AA," or "Algorithm Automation" because that's what "AI" actually is. An algorithm is a series of steps that is used to accomplish a standardized, repeatable task. Automating algorithms is an objective many industries have been working on for many years. It's not new, and renaming it may make it sound a little sexier, but that's just artificial hype.

Typically we are encouraged to talk through our thought processes. This is often helpful in the context of friendships, personal relationships, and therapy sessions. A public forum where discussion about an important or sensitive topic is taking place is not the place to talk through the evolution of your understanding. It's okay not to know everything, and it's okay not to bring a fully formed opinion to every discussion. It's okay to listen and gather information and viewpoints, and then take the time to consider them, gather additional information, and then begin to form an opinion. Our society is so hell-bent on the "set it and forget it" mindset that we want to land on a conclusion, call it gospel, and move on without ever having to consider it again. It doesn't work like that.

Jargon can be dangerous because it attaches insincerity to the things we say. Using someone else's words is a way of trying to distance ourselves from what's being said, and the consequences of saying it. It doesn't work, it just makes the speaker look bad.

Let things go. It's okay. Capturing and remembering everything isn't necessary. You aren't your possessions, your experiences, or your memories. You don't have to "know who you are" in order to be fantastic and worthwhile. Just be.

You don't gotta. When you think about your obligations, remind yourself that for the most part, no, you actually don't gotta.