In a world where AI optimizes everything, embracing aimless walks and random inefficiency becomes the last human super-power for breakthrough ideas.
Random walks and aimless moments are the hidden engine of breakthrough thinking. When the author's infant woke him at 4:30 AM, he let his mind wander instead of chasing a meditation app. Those unfocused thoughts turned into posts, a habit born from insomnia, not strategy.
He recounts building a walking billboard for a startup, coding a tool to strip em-dashes, and walking into a restaurant without checking Yelp, only to become a regular where the owner knows his kids' names. None of these actions were efficient, yet each sparked a new direction that polished processes never could.
The piece argues that AI now handles all optimized work-pattern finding, waste elimination, output maximization-leaving humans without a competitive edge. Random, genuinely stupid collisions are the last super-power because they generate ideas AI cannot predict. Embracing inefficiency becomes a form of rebellion against a world that optimizes everything to irrelevance.
For technical leaders, the takeaway is clear: schedule aimless walks, leave your phone behind, and let conversations drift. Those moments create the raw material for innovation that no framework or prompt can replace. By protecting space for randomness, you give your team the edge AI can't match.
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