Our Bio Rhythms vs. Machine Rhythms

AI is always on. We’re not. Here’s how to protect the cycles that make us human.

We were never designed to live “always on.” Yet that’s exactly the pace our technologies demand of us. Machines don’t rest. Algorithms don’t pause. AI never sleeps. And increasingly, neither do we.

As organic beings, we are wired to live by our natural bio rhythms — deeply ingrained cycles that govern our energy, emotions, and well-being. Day turns into night. Periods of activity are followed by rest. Growth is balanced by recovery.

These rhythms are not optional; they are the blueprint for how we function and thrive.

But in today’s fast-paced, machine-driven world, those rhythms are under threat. Algorithms, AI, and other technologies don’t follow the same cycles. They don’t need rest. They don’t recalibrate. They are “always on,” and increasingly, so are we.

This shift disrupts something fundamental about how we live. When our natural rhythms are overridden, we experience fatigue, burnout, and a loss of connection — not just to ourselves, but to the deeper flow of life.

The Cost of Being “Always On”

Our bio rhythms — such as the circadian rhythm that dictates our sleep-wake cycle — are finely tuned systems that require balance. These rhythms don’t just govern sleep; they influence hormones, mental clarity, and emotional well-being.

When we ignore them, we risk more than tiredness — we risk destabilizing the very systems that keep us grounded and effective.

But in a world of constant connectivity, we’ve adapted to unnatural rhythms. Notifications and deadlines pull us out of sync with our bodies. Even our downtime is invaded by the endless scroll of social media or the pressure to stay “productive.”

Worse still, this state of being “always on” doesn’t just affect individuals; it reshapes our culture. We prioritize speed over depth, output over meaning, and noise over reflection. The cost is visible in the rise of stress-related illness, mental health challenges, and our collective inability to truly rest.

Reclaiming Self-Regulation Through Bio Rhythms

Self-regulation is the key to reclaiming our natural rhythms. It’s about aligning with the cycles that sustain us instead of letting external systems dictate our pace. True self-regulation doesn’t mean rejecting technology; it means integrating it in ways that respect our humanity.

To self-regulate effectively, we must reconnect with our bio rhythms:

• The Rhythm of Rest and Action: Rest is not the opposite of productivity — it’s a crucial part of it. Honor your need for downtime as much as your drive for achievement.

• The Rhythm of Day and Night: Protect your sleep cycles by creating boundaries around screen time and adopting rituals that signal rest to your body.

• The Rhythm of Growth and Renewal: Growth isn’t linear. It requires space for reflection, recovery, and recalibration.

  
  

Rituals as Anchors in a Disrupted World

Our rhythms thrive on consistency, and rituals act as anchors in the storm of modern life. Unlike habits, which can become mechanical, rituals are intentional acts imbued with meaning. They align us with our deeper purpose and help regulate our energy, focus, and emotions.

Here’s the difference:

• A routine keeps life moving. A ritual keeps life meaningful.

• Routine is functional — it gets things done.

• Ritual is intentional — it anchors us in who we are and how we connect.

What you create through ritual isn’t just structure — it’s sanctuary.
Those micro-rituals — the candle over tea, the gentle “How’s your heart?” — carry presence, not just process.

They say, “You matter here,” without a single lecture or performance.

Leadership at home — and in life — isn’t about doing more.
It’s about doing the small things with enough care to make them sacred.

“A routine gets you through the day — a ritual brings you back to yourself.”

From Bio Rhythms to Thought Rhythms

Just as our bodies are wired to live in cycles, so too are our minds. Thought itself has a rhythm: the ebb and flow between focus and distraction, effort and ease, generation and reflection.

But when we interact with AI tools like ChatGPT, we risk short-circuiting this rhythm. AI provides answers instantly, bypassing the very pauses and struggles that make thought meaningful. Instead of wrestling with ideas — connecting dots, resting, and then arriving at insight — we outsource the effort. We skip the pause. We hand over the generative process too soon.

Singer Tom Waits once put it this way:

“We have a deficit of wonder. When I ask people a question now, they get out their phones. I say nooo! I don’t want the answer. I just want to wonder about it awhile.”

When was the last time you gave yourself space to struggle, to sit in the unknown, before rushing to an answer?

The result of skipping this rhythm is stark. As Dr. Marcus Bowles and I wrote in our fourth Human-Centred AI whitepaper, The Language Alchemist:

“The greatest danger is not that AI will take our place, but that we will cease to take our own. Dependent not on discovering our own answers, but reliant on being provided them. Information arrives without imagination. Communication happens without community. Outputs exist without orientation.”

This is the risk of thought patterns that become “always on.” When imagination, community, and orientation are stripped away, what remains is speed without substance. Efficiency without depth. Information without understanding. Connection without coherence.