Finding Spiritual Significance

principle 1: user experiences are probabilistic, not deterministic

you can’t control how someone experiences your product. experiences are personal and subjective. all you can do is increase the likelihood that they’ll have a positive one. AI’s role is to optimize the odds—it doesn’t guarantee anything, but it can shape the environment to make a positive outcome more likely. it’s about shaping probabilities, not dictating experiences.

principle 2: AI is the gardener, not the architect

AI isn’t building rigid systems or telling users what to do. it’s creating a flexible, adaptive environment. think of it like a gardener, not an architect. the AI helps set the right conditions for users to succeed, but it doesn’t control how that success happens. over time, it adapts as users interact with it, growing and evolving alongside them.

principle 3: create a dynamic, learning environment

a great product is a living system. the product experience should constantly learn from its users, adjusting and improving based on how people interact with it. right now, we rely on human feedback to do this, but the future is a product that can learn directly from its users. it evolves, refines, and adapts in real-time, cutting out the middleman and making the feedback loop faster and more direct.

principle 4: co-regulate with the user’s nervous system

one of the most powerful things a product can do is sync with the user’s nervous system. your product should be able to regulate stress and calmness in the user. by paying attention to how users behave (like when they’re frustrated or taking too long on a task), the AI can adjust the experience to keep them either engaged or calm, depending on what’s needed. this creates a more personalized, responsive experience.

principle 5: start broad, refine subtle

when building a product, you start with big adjustments. you need to see what works and what doesn’t. but over time, as the AI learns more about the user, it should begin making smaller, more subtle refinements. these marginal gains are where the real magic happens, turning a decent product into a great one. it’s the little things that often make the biggest difference.

principle 6: reveal hidden constraints

users don’t always know what’s holding them back. sometimes they’re limited by things they can’t see—whether it’s mental, emotional, or something else. the AI’s job is to identify those hidden constraints and surface them in a way that helps the user move forward. by watching for patterns in behavior, AI can help users overcome obstacles they might not even realize they have.

principle 7: the product is always evolving

there’s no such thing as a finished product. users change, expectations shift, and the world moves forward. your product has to keep evolving. AI should be built to continuously learn and adapt, so the product stays relevant and valuable even as the world around it changes. it’s a constant cycle of evaluation and improvement.

principle 8: fail gracefully, iterate rapidly

not everything will work right away, and that’s fine. the key is to iterate quickly and learn from failures. even when things go wrong, your product should still provide value and recover gracefully. AI helps by speeding up the iteration process, making adjustments smarter each time. it’s about learning fast, failing fast, and improving faster.

The practice: relax as much tension in your body as you can.

By relaxing, you automatically enter the present moment. 

As you move your attention around your body, finding areas to release tension, you build more presence. 

Which allows your body, your fascia, to resonate, like a tuning fork, with the present moment.

All you have to do is relax and resonate.

Love all the parts. Even the painful ones. Especially the painful ones. 

The tired ones. The scared ones. The worried ones. The hurt ones. The angry ones. The shameful ones. The guilty ones. The sad ones. The disappointed ones. The ones that think they aren't good enough. The ones that don't want to get into trouble anymore.

The ones who just want a break.

Love all your parts.

Doing inner work is hard.

Especially with parts of us burdened with intense, negative emotions.

I learned about a framework for working with these parts. It's called RAIN. (Shoutout @know for sharing this with me)

R: Recognize

A: Accept without an agenda

I: Compassionately investigate

N: Nurture

Whenever a part arises:

1. We recognize what type of part it is

2. We accept it

3. We become curious about it

4. And then we do whatever we need to do to nurture this part back into health

The other day I ordered a small pizza for lunch.

Afterwards, I went for a walk and felt a craving to eat the leftovers.

I stopped, recognized that this was a part, allowed it to exist, and started to investigate.

I asked it where it was coming from and it told me that wasting food wasn't good.

I asked that part where it learned that, and the part zips me over to a younger version of myself.

Shamed by my parents for not finishing my lentil soup.

I look at that young boy, crying on the dining table, and I bring myself into that image with him.

I pull up a chair, put my hand on his head, and tell him that it will be alright and that he isn't alone.

I eat with him, and we finish. I tell him that I am there for him and that he doesn't need to worry again.

I tell him that if food goes to waste in the future, I will deal with it. He doesn't need to.

A shift occurs.

That craving turns into an intention to go home and throw the pizza out. And that is exactly what happens.

I throw it out.

Feeling no desire to eat it, when a few moments ago, it was all I wanted.