Emotional Intelligence is Gold in the Age of Automation

Miraikan, 2 Chome-3–6 Aomi, Koto City, Tokyo, Japan The humanoid android robot Alter recreates human movements at the Mirakian museum in Tokyo. Source: Unsplash

We are in an emotional and physical crisis and it is far from over. Government lockdowns of sectors of the economy, and other mandates have caused physical and psychological harm to so many of us. While often well-intentioned, these lockdowns have destroyed small businesses. Children are socially isolated from their peers. Seniors died in nursing homes by the tens of thousands due to poor government policies, while others are choosing euthanasia. Computer models predict as much as a 145% increase in suicide rates. And, there are over 2 million COVID-19 related deaths reported in the world. There is also a debate on which would lead to the greatest harm — the economic and psychological cost of shutting down the world economy, or the deaths that could be prevented. Emotions are high on both sides of this debate and one thing is certain: we often dismiss the feelings of the other side.

Robots aren’t the only automated solution. Image by Michal Jarmoluk from Pixabay

What Does This Have to do with Automation?

I am a strong advocate for data-driven decisions. It’s true that gut decisions rely on our wealth of individual experiences. They’re useful when you walk home from a bar at 3am, or when time is short and…