Joanna Stern is an Emmy Award-winning technology journalist who was previously the personal technology columnist at The Wall Street Journal. For many years, she has been one of the most recognizable and entertaining voices in consumer tech, and she just recently launched her own media company and YouTube channel called New Things. Her new book is I Am Not a Robot: My Year Using AI to Do (Almost) Everything (Amazon, Bookshop)*.

What if you decided to go to AI first for virtually everything in your life? Joanna Stern decided to do exactly that and captured it all in her recent book. In this episode, we explore how those implications are showing up for a lot of us in the workplace.

• Customer service functions are one of many places where organizations are already using AI to supplement or replace work that people used to do.
• Some aspects of AI work are preferred by both customers and employees. For others, having people in the loop is essential.
• AI may eliminate some jobs and hiring. It also presents an opportunity to create work that is more interesting.
• For many aspects of work and research, AI is useful as a “first pass” that helps the human spend more time doing the things that humans do.
• The AI pushback is real and helpful. It allows us to grapple with how we use new technology and the best way for it to show up in our work and lives.

• I Am Not a Robot: My Year Using AI to Do (Almost) Everything by Joanna Stern (Amazon, Bookshop)*
• New Things by Joanna Stern

• Principles for Using AI at Work, with Ethan Mollick (episode 674)
• Becoming an AI-Savvy Leader, with David De Cremer (episode 710)
• Using AI to Make Networking Easier, with Ruth Gotian (episode 766)

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Daniel Coyle is the New York Times bestselling author of The Culture Code, which was named Best Business Book of the Year by Bloomberg, BookPal, and Business Insider. He has served as an advisor to many high-performing organizations, including the Navy SEALs, Microsoft, Google, and the Cleveland Guardians. His newest book is Flourish: The Art of Building Meaning, Joy, and Fulfillment (Amazon, Bookshop)*.

When teams really thrive, it isn’t about luck or simply optimizing systems. Instead, it’s about intentionally creating spaces for connection, agency, and shared growth. In this conversation, Daniel and I discuss where to begin to help a team flourish.

• Life (and leadership) is treasure creation, not a treasure hunt.
• Flourishing environments encourage experimentation, agency, and even mistakes, allowing ownership and innovation to thrive.
• If leaders think like designers, using questions and constraints, they will more likely unlock people’s full potential.
• Simple acts such as little “thank you’s” build psychological safety and lay the foundation for flourishing groups.
• Some of the world’s greatest innovations emerged from environments that welcomed surprise, cross-pollination, and flexibility.
• Value the art of asking good questions over having all the answers.

• Flourish: The Art of Building Meaning, Joy, and Fulfillment by Daniel Coyle (Amazon, Bookshop)*

Download my interview notes in PDF format (free membership required).

• What Innovative Leaders Do Differently, with Linda Hill (episode 774)
• How to Help People Flourish, with Marcus Buckingham (episode 778)
• The Counterintuitive Secret to Creativity and Focus, with David Epstein (episode 789)

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David Epstein is the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Range and The Sports Gene, both of which have been translated into more than 30 languages. He was previously the host of Slate‘s popular “How To!” podcast and a science and investigative reporter at ProPublica. His TED talks have been viewed more than 12 million times. His newest book is also a New York Times bestseller: Inside the Box: How Constraints Make Us Better (Amazon, Bookshop)*.

It seems like we should be the most focused, creative, and innovative when we are the freest to do whatever we want. Turns out, it’s pretty much the exact opposite. In this conversation, David and I discuss why constraints make all the difference.

• Myth: we are most creative and innovative when we are most free. In fact, it’s the opposite.
• Given complete freedom, we tend to follow the path of least resistance. The Einstellung effect: employing only familiar methods even if better ones are available.
• General Magic (the most important technology company that nobody’s ever heard of) had virtually no constraints and ultimately produced nothing.
• Write down hypotheses and make commitments visible before you begin. Give people agency in creating constraints.
• If your organization or team was being handed off to someone else tomorrow, what’s the first thing the new leader would change? Consider making that change now.
• To avoid over-indexing on constraints, ask this question: “Could I still surprise myself?”

• Inside the Box: How Constraints Make Us Better by David Epstein (Amazon, Bookshop)*

Download my interview notes in PDF format (free membership required).

• How to Transform Your Limitations Into Advantages, with Mark Barden (episode 207)
• Help Your Brain Learn, with Lisa Feldman Barrett (episode 513)
• Get People Reading What You’re Sending, with Todd Rogers (episode 666)

Activate your free membership for full access to the entire library of interviews since 2011, searchable by topic. To accelerate your learning, uncover more inside Coaching for Leaders Plus.