Hands-on AI
How can I lead during these incredible times of change if I don’t understand AI at a hands-on level? As 2026 kicked off, I dove headfirst into exploration mode, mostly with ChatGPT and Claude (Chat, Cowork and Design). I’ve created custom GPTs to deliver crisp daily news briefings every morning at 5am. I’ve created a personal sounding board GPT to help think through important decisions. I’ve even started to use an astrology GPT called Star Path. (Try it; it will blow your mind.)
Nevertheless, I felt like my self-directed learning only got me so far. Last month, I wrapped up a seven-week MIT course (Artificial Intelligence: Implications for Business Strategy), which I posted about recently. To complement that macro-level course, I dove into MasterClass’s new AI certification (AI Fundamentals: Think, Create and Work Smarter). The platform features Hollywood-quality content. It's easy to navigate and more “hands on keyboards” in contrast to the MIT course. (It's also significantly more affordable at $250.) You learn to improve your prompting, build custom GPTs, assess your job to understand how AI can complement your work and there is an excellent module on ethics.
AI is much debated. As I’ve refined my thinking, a few things stand out as critical:
GOOD, NOT EVIL? We are in charge of the future we want to see. Instead of feeling victimized by AI, I’d rather dive in to shape it and ensure AI is used for good. Most of us are not the CEO of Anthropic but we can still do our small parts to nudge the use of AI in a nutritive direction.
AI EMPLOYEES? I don’t like this framing. For many roles, AI will augment people and enable them to work on higher value activities. Calling agents “AI employees” might imply it’s a zero-sum game. I want to do what I can to ensure that’s not the case.
DISPLACEMENT? I also think it’s true that AI will shift which jobs are needed. There will be displacement. When Henry Ford made the Model T mainstream, fewer horse breeders were inevitably needed. It’s a hard reality but if we face into it, we can take deliberate steps to retrain and bridge impacted people.
EARLY ADOPTION? You can’t influence what you don’t understand. This technology is easier to learn than I thought. Try it. Start today. Carry a grain of salt with you – but don’t play ostrich. The more people gain AI fluency, the more we can ensure the future honors our expectations as a society.
It’s worth noting that I wrote this LinkedIn post 100% myself. I put it into ChatGPT to critique it and while it offered some pithy edits, this time, I rejected them all. I kept it pure human (because we are still in charge!). Can you feel a difference?