AI Doesn’t Have Consciousness Yet — But Do We Always Use Ours?

Recently, I spoke at the Richmond IT Forum, sharing insights on how to reach peak performance and navigate uncertainty in the age of complexity and AI. It was a room buzzing with data, strategy, and innovation — but what struck me most wasn’t a technical question.

It was a human one.

We all know that AI doesn’t have consciousness yet.

It doesn’t feel.

It doesn’t reflect.

It doesn’t carry emotional memory or have an inner world.

But here’s the deeper truth:

Many of us humans live disconnected from our own consciousness.

We rush through days on autopilot.

We chase achievements but avoid emotions.

We think we’re awake because our eyes are open — but are we really here?

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Let’s talk about the levels of consciousness — the human kind.

Unlike machines, we have the power to choose how deeply we live.

1. Basic Awareness – The Survival Mode

This is where most people operate day to day. You’re reacting to life. Answering emails. Ticking boxes. Making it through the day. You’re conscious — but you’re not connected.

AI can do this. So can we. But that’s not living. That’s maintaining.

2. Emotional Awareness – The Awakening

Here, you start feeling. You notice your stress, your anxiety, your joy. You begin asking, Why am I feeling this way?

You see patterns. You realize your emotions aren’t random.

This level is the bridge between reaction and reflection.

3. Self-Reflective Awareness – The Shift

This is where it gets powerful.

You question not just what you’re doing — but who you’re becoming.

You start recognizing limiting beliefs. You see your autopilot behaviours and begin choosing differently.

You are no longer just the actor — you become the director.

4. Meta-Awareness – The Observer

At this level, you can step outside of yourself.

You become the watcher of your thoughts.

You can be in the storm without becoming the storm. This is the realm of mindfulness, deep emotional regulation, and presence.

From this place, power returns. Peace returns. Choice returns.

5. Transcendent Awareness – The Connection

Few reach this consistently. But when they do, it’s life-changing.

You feel connected — to nature, to others, to something bigger.

Ego softens. Fear fades. You see life not just as a race to run, but a mystery to experience.

You move from control to trust. From separation to unity.

And here’s the truth, from someone who’s jumped into frozen lakes and frozen fears:

Each time I step out of my comfort zone, I rise a level.

Not because I want to prove something — but because I want to feel something.

To be fully alive. To wake up.

That’s what ice water has taught me. That’s what consciousness demands.

So, I ask you — honestly:

Which level are you living from right now?

What would it take to go one level deeper?

What are you avoiding by staying comfortably unconscious?

In a world obsessed with artificial intelligence, we forget our natural intelligence — the deep wisdom of the body, heart, and spirit.

AI may not have consciousness yet.

But you do.

The question is: Are you using it?

With fierce love and presence,

Deniz