We need to talk about AI. Or rather, we need to talk about how we talk about AI.

Or rather, we need to talk about how we don't talk about AI.

Because right now, in boardrooms and Slack channels across the world, leaders are inadvertently creating a culture of AI shame. They're reinforcing the very hesitation they should be helping their teams overcome. And it's time for an intervention.

Imagine walking into a meeting and proudly announcing, "Don't worry everyone—I prepared this entire presentation without using any data." You'd be laughed out of the room. Yet leaders do the equivalent every day when they brag about not using AI. They're essentially saying, "Don't worry, I intentionally limited my capabilities while working on this."

It's as absurd as looking at a stunning photograph and saying, "Well, anyone with a camera could have done that." No, they couldn't have. Having access to a tool doesn't equal mastery of that tool. A camera doesn't make you Annie Leibovitz. A kitchen doesn't make you Thomas Keller. And having access to ChatGPT doesn't automatically mean you can create exceptional work products.

So when someone asks if you used AI, stop apologizing. Instead, ask them: "Can you imagine me NOT using every tool available to create the best possible work?"

The Real Cost of AI Stigma

I witnessed this play out in real time today during an AI boot camp with a global hospitality company. A leader kicked off by sharing an impressive presentation about a new project. The second presenter began apologetically: "Oh sorry, I didn't prepare any slides, but let me just tell you what I'm working on."

Then something fascinating happened. The first presenter dropped into the chat: "Don't worry—Copilot built the PowerPoint for me 😊"

The chat erupted with hearts. That moment didn't just change how people saw the first presenter's work—it changed how they saw their own future work. Suddenly, everyone understood: professional-looking presentations weren't about having more time, they were about having better tools.

This isn't just about presentations. The numbers are staggering: up to 48% of employees are hiding their AI use from managers, with that number jumping to 55% among younger workers. Think about that: half your workforce is concealing tools that could dramatically improve their work.

Right now, your best people are hiding their AI use. That brilliant analysis Jenny did? She's not sharing her process because she's afraid you'll value it less. That innovative solution Mark developed? He's keeping his AI techniques to himself. Your organization isn't just losing efficiency—it's losing all the compound learning that comes from shared discovery. Every time someone feels they need to hide their AI use, your organization falls further behind.

From "Don't Worry" to "Of Course"

I witnessed this shift in another workshop with a Fortune 500 company. At the end, a senior leader proudly declared, "Don't worry, I won't use AI for the green-lighting process." I had to pause the meeting.

"How would you feel," I asked, "if your doctor said 'Don't worry, I won't use any technology to help with my diagnosis'?"

The room went silent. Then the leader smiled and said, "Let me rephrase that: Of course I'm going to use every tool available to mitigate my own bias and complement my thinking so we can reach the best possible path forward."

This isn't just theory. Guy Kawasaki shared how AI improved his book Be Remarkable. When AI suggested an example better than anything he'd thought of, he didn't hide it—he celebrated it. "Of course I included it," he said. "My responsibility to the reader is to deliver the best examples possible."

At Asana, they've gone even further. The system automatically specifies how much of a report was written with AI assistance—and here's the kicker: higher AI usage carries more prestige. Lower AI usage? That's almost seen as a missed opportunity to create better work.

Changing Your AI Soundtrack

The stories we tell about AI in our organizations become self-fulfilling prophecies. When leaders whisper about AI use or treat it as something to be embarrassed about, they create a culture of hesitation and shame. But when leaders openly share their processes, like Diarra Bousso, founder and CEO of fashion company Diarrablu, who creates detailed Loom videos showing her team exactly how she uses AI to enhance her work, they create a culture of innovation and growth. She told us that she refuses to level up privately while expecting more from her team—instead, she brings everyone along on the journey.

It's time to change your leadership soundtrack from "don't worry, I won't use AI" to "let me show you how I'm using every available tool to create exceptional work."

Your Next 30 Minutes Matter More Than Your Next 30 Meetings

Here are three immediate actions to take—yes, right now:

1. Put a Post-it note on your monitor that says "Have you tried AI?" This isn't just for you—it's a visible signal to everyone who comes to your desk about what matters.

2. Think of the last cool thing you did with AI. Not something you read about—something you actually did. Now identify one person in your organization who needs to hear about it. Send them a message. Today. Not to brag, but to inspire.

3. Put out a call to your team: you want to spotlight innovative AI use. Create a channel for sharing AI wins. Offer recognition or rewards for the most creative applications. Make sharing the norm, not the exception.

Every day you wait to change this narrative, three things happen: Your best people become more hesitant to share their methods. Your most innovative solutions stay locked in people's private ChatGPT histories. And your competitors who've normalized AI use pull further ahead.

You're not just missing out on AI's benefits—you're actively creating a culture where using the best tools available feels shameful. And that's not just irresponsible leadership—it's organizational malpractice.

Your job isn't to protect your team from AI. Your job is to protect them from falling behind because they thought they needed to hide their AI use.

So stop reading. Open your team chat. And share the last cool thing you did with AI. Because your team isn't waiting for permission to use AI—they're waiting for permission to be proud of it.

*this post written in proud collaboration with Claude by Anthropic

Related: Beyond the Prompt: Guy Kawasaki
Related: Beyond the Prompt: Paige Costello
Related: Beyond the Prompt: Diarra Bousso

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