Wisdom & Analysis

On Progress and Paying Attention: Navigating the Unbearable Pace of Change

It’s a common sentiment today: the world is changing too fast. The constant churn of technology, culture, and work can feel overwhelming, even unbearable. But is this feeling unique to our time? Or are we simply experiencing the latest chapter in a long story of human adaptation?

A History of “Unbearable” Change

Every modern era has believed its own pace of change to be unprecedented and unsustainable.

  • The Industrial Revolution (1750–1900): The shift from farm to factory was brutal and disorienting. Steam power, railways, and mechanized looms destroyed entire ways of life. People rioted, smashing the machines they believed were stealing their future. The world felt like it was accelerating beyond control.
  • The Early 20th Century (1900–1950): The introduction of mass-produced cars, planes, radio, and antibiotics fundamentally reshaped daily existence. This era’s technology also brought unprecedented destruction through two world wars, with tanks, bombers, and finally, the atomic bomb, making the future feel terrifying.
  • The Mid-to-Late 20th Century (1950–2000): The digital age began. Computers, television, and the early internet created massive generational divides. The Cold War introduced the existential threat of nuclear annihilation, while fears of automation “taking over” became mainstream.
  • Today (2000–2025): Our revolution is one of connection and intelligence. Smartphones, social media, and AI have compressed change into shorter and shorter cycles. We’ve gone from offline to “always on” in 15 years, and now generative AI is reshaping knowledge work itself. This compression is what fuels our sense of unease.

Why This Wave Feels Different

The current pace can feel uniquely unbearable for a few key reasons:

  • Compression of Time: Previous technological shifts unfolded over decades. The smartphone took roughly a decade to become a ubiquitous, mainstream product. In contrast, Large Language Models (LLMs) went from a relatively niche technology to a tool used by hundreds of millions and a global topic of conversation in less than three years. This acceleration in adoption and awareness is what leaves little time for societal adaptation.
  • Constant Connection: The churn is inescapable. There is no longer an “off” switch. Change follows us into our homes and pockets, blurring the lines between work, life, and the relentless news cycle.
  • Unclear Boundaries: AI doesn’t just introduce new gadgets; it challenges fundamental aspects of our lives simultaneously—our work, our identity, our trust in information, and our political systems.

History, however, offers a comforting perspective: change arrives in waves, not as a constant, ever-steepening climb. After a disruptive leap (like the steam engine, electrification, or the internet), society spends years or decades stabilizing and building new norms around it. We are at the very beginning of the AI wave, the moment of maximum turbulence. The ground will settle as the technology matures into reliable, everyday tools.

Just as nuclear weapons became a background noise of deterrence and smartphones are now ordinary, AI will eventually fade into the fabric of “normal.”

The Nature of Our Challenge: Psychological vs. Physical Survival

While every era faced disruption, the nature of that disruption has changed dramatically. For most of history, the primary struggles were physical.

  • Past: Life was defined by the fight for survival. People endured famine, rampant disease with no cures, unsafe childbirth, and backbreaking physical labor. Stability could be erased overnight by war, plague, or a bad harvest.
  • Now: For many, the struggle has moved inward. Our challenges are less about immediate physical survival and more about psychological adaptation. We face information overload, the erosion of old identities, and the stress of navigating a constantly shifting digital landscape.

This is not to diminish our struggles, but to frame them. We are, by historical standards, living in a period of remarkable comfort, safety, and freedom. Global violence is at a historic low, lifespans are decades longer, and more people have personal and political agency than ever before.

The Path Forward: Pay Attention

Acknowledging this progress is not a call for complacency. It is a call to awareness. The past teaches us that change is relentless, creating both immense opportunity and significant risk. To navigate the future successfully, we must not just live in it, but actively observe it.

  1. See the Wonder: Don’t become numb to the incredible advancements unfolding around you. From biotech to reusable rockets, we live in an age of marvels. Appreciating this “march of humanity” is essential to maintaining a forward-looking and optimistic perspective.
  2. Identify the Opportunities: Technological and social shifts create new avenues for growth, connection, and contribution. Those who pay attention can position themselves to seize these fleeting opportunities, whether in their careers, their communities, or their personal lives.
  3. Recognize the Risks: Every change creates winners and losers. Automation, AI, and social reorganization will displace established norms and jobs. Being wary of these changes, understanding their trajectory, and adapting proactively is the key to ensuring you are not on the wrong end of progress.

The feeling that the world is changing too fast is a historical constant. Our task is not to halt the change, but to understand it. The challenge of our time is not merely to endure, but to engage. Pay attention. The future is arriving faster than ever. Be ready to meet it.