"Hello, [New] World!"
FM (Friday Morning) Reflection #11
When we’re challenged by new technologies or seismic cultural shifts, I’ve noticed a common tendency: step back, be cautious, let others figure things out, and then plot a way forward.
Some people mistakenly characterize that as a way to be a “fast follower.” I understand the appeal—it’s a safe approach. But it’s never been my style.
My bias is to lean into the unknown and run towards challenges instead of away from them. I’m naturally compelled to understand concepts and the mechanics of how things work—to develop a fundamental understanding of how the sausage gets made—so I can be an active participant in making it the best it can be.
I’m at my best when I’m leading as a strategist, practitioner, and innovator.
I’ve always had a hands-on approach, but at several points in my career, I’ve felt like I was the odd one out. I remember a few weeks into my first corporate VP role, I was working to staff up and organize the department, design our tech stack, and launch our first initiatives. I gave a colleague an overview of where we were going and what we needed to do. They responded, “Oh, you’re going to be a VP who actually does things.”
That left me speechless for a moment. "Of course, I’m going to get things done. That’s why I’m here. Isn’t that what you expect from a leader?" But as I’ve spent more time in the executive ranks, I’ve come to understand the sentiment behind my colleague’s comment, and that there’s a wide spectrum in the way “leaders” engage their remit.
As an executive, there’s always a lot coming at you. You can’t do it all. You do need to make choices and call your shots. And when you’re already managing countless priorities, a sea change like the arrival of Generative AI can feel like it threatens to overwhelm even the best-laid plans.
In these moments, the instinct to seek safety, ignore, or wait until you’re forced to change can be powerful. But you can’t delegate or outsource curiosity and the pursuit of knowledge.
You must stay connected to the work and the nature of the work. If you let go of the steering wheel and let the cruise control take over, you’ll eventually end up in the ditch because the road ahead requires skillful navigation.
And there’s the opposite reaction—the instinct to grab the wheel and fight like hell to stay the course—which is just as risky. Remember when IT departments tried to resist the iPhone? Consumers won that battle hands down. How’s the forced march to RTO going? Not so great in many quarters.
Neither of those approaches works for me. When things change, I purposely approach them with a beginner’s mind. Beginners don’t need to know everything before putting one foot in front of the other to begin a new leg of the journey. And once they understand the fundamentals—how things work, why they happen, and some of the dynamics—they can start building new systems that generate returns from new technology and shifts in the playing field.
This week, I found myself discussing why Large Language Models (LLM) are best characterized as assistants, not copilots, and how LLMs combined with agents embedded in mature AI-orchestration frameworks can deliver tangible benefits.
This practical understanding gives me insight into how to leverage these systems to create value across an organization.
I’m where I am today because several years ago, I realized I was at a crossroads. While my leadership skills had never been better, my understanding of how Generative AI works needed to be developed. I was not content to be out of touch with the tools of the future.
So, I bought a book on Python for Analytics and another on LLMs and agents. I started at page one. I approached it ready to venture into a new land and learn a new language through immersion—no shortcuts, no executive summaries, and no priority access to bypass the line of learning the fundamentals. It took a while to retrain my brain which wanted to revert to prior patterns. “Why do you do it that way?” is not a phrase you’ll find in the first pages of a language learning guide for a reason. Over time, I came to understand the new landscape, started to see the patterns, and developed my skills. And now I lead an enterprise office that delivers AI initiatives for thousands of colleagues across the country.
My intention to embrace new ideas and concepts with a beginner’s mind has become an essential part of how I lead and develop my own capabilities, as well as those around me.
This approach helps me to connect the dots between technology, business, strategy, and creativity with better fluency. And now, as I help others in their own learning, I’ve realized that sometimes the best approach isn’t a polished briefing or a glossy presentation—it’s sitting down with someone and saying, “Let’s start from the beginning. Let’s wonder and appreciate. Let’s build it together.”
I believe anyone can adopt this principle. Start with intention. Know where you are, where you need to go, and appreciate the gap. Harness the energy coming out of that revelation to motivate yourself forward.
My experience taught me that engaging with curiosity, openness, wonder, and appreciation, prepares leaders to get things both generally right and specifically right when the ground shifts.
Bring an open mind, ready to learn and explore. You’ll need to adjust, rethink, and adapt—often in ways you didn’t expect. Keep your playbook handy, but don’t be afraid to set it aside when the situation demands something new.
The best leaders aren’t just prepared for change—they welcome it, knowing that each twist and turn offers a chance to discover something better—one act at a time.
Have a great weekend!
Photo Bonus
Knowing where you are is essential to understanding the distance between that and where you want to go. In this photo, I was standing in center of the the courtyard of Philadelphia City Hall. “Hello, World!” - I’m here!