What Every High-Performing Leader Needs to Know and Do About AI Right Now

Over the last 6 months, I’ve been inundated with requests from executives looking to “get started with AI.” 

You’re hearing about new tools daily or you’ve read one of my blogs on AI Strategy, AI Product Development, or the Promise (and Perils) of Building Without Code.

And feel either overwhelmed, behind, or unsure where to start. Yet 90% of you are asking the wrong questions.

The most successful executives don’t start with AI tools. They start with systems.

The temptation to dive into AI tools is real. ChatGPT. Claude. Perplexity. Every executive I work with is experimenting — and overwhelmed.

But here’s the truth:

👉 Tools are tactics.

👉 Many of your existing skills or behaviors need to be unlearned.

👉 Real transformation starts with systems.

In my experience advising founders, Fortune 500 execs, and venture teams, the leaders who get exponential results from AI aren’t just asking “What tools should I try?”

They ask: “What systems in my work should AI improve, replace, or reimagine?”

That shift — from curiosity to clarity — is where the magic happens.

🎯 Free Diagnostic Tool: Where Should You Start With AI?

We’ve been inundated with so many requests on how to do this, and after helping tens of Executives get started with our Coaching Program we’ve set up a quiz to help leaders understand where they are, what outcomes they are aiming for, what’s missing and where to start with AI.

We’ve created a simple diagnostic to help you find the best starting point for your AI journey.

It takes 5 minutes.

Answer 20 questions.

Get clear on where to focus:

• Personal productivity
• Departmental optimization
• Product and service innovation opportunities and
• Benchmark both your own and your business AI-readiness

👉 Take the AI Diagnostic and Discover Your AI-Readiness Score Now

Your AI Executive Edge

In my latest blog, How Do I Start With AI as an Executive? I unpack the three principles every executive needs to adopt before going all-in on AI. Here’s the short version:

1. Don’t start with tools. Start with work. What decisions take you the longest? What meetings are draining you? Those are your AI leverage points.
2. Define “productive” like an executive. Productivity isn’t about doing more. It’s about increasing your impact per decision.
3. AI is not a shortcut. It’s a strategy. If you treat it like a gimmick, you’ll burn time. If you treat it like a system, you’ll change how you lead.

 Read the full article here »

Free Tools I’ve Created for Executives

To accelerate requests for help, I’ve also been building and sharing a growing set of free tools to help executives get started with AI — and actually use it meaningfully in their work.

If you’re serious about integrating AI into your leadership — but not sure where to begin — I’ve built a few free resources to help you get clarity, fast.

These are the same tools I use with CEOs, board members, and Fortune 500 leaders getting hands-on with AI right now:

🩻 AI Diagnostic Tool: Find Your Best Starting Point

Take this quick diagnostic to uncover your highest-leverage entry point for AI — based on your current leadership context.

▶️ AI Strategy Blog, Worksheet + Webinar

A full suite to help you craft your AI strategy — including a guided worksheet and a 30-minute strategy webinar to walk you through it.

🗺️ AI Strategic Roadmap (Downloadable PDF)

A simple, actionable roadmap to help you assess where you are, where to go next, and how to build AI into your leadership systems.

These tools have already helped hundreds of leaders think more clearly, move faster, and make better decisions with AI. Give them a try, and send us your populated canvas or strategy.

The Neuroscience of Now with Dr. Marcia Goddard

(One of our most listened-to podcasts in the last 12 months)

I met Dr. Marcia Goddard at an executive offsite during the Monaco Grand Prix.

The setting was glamorous. But what stood out was Marcia’s thinking. She’s a neuroscientist turned performance advisor who helps elite organizations—from Formula 1 teams to multinationals—build teams that thrive under pressure.

In this conversation, we unpack:

• The neuroscience of high-performing teams
• How to build psychological safety and drive accountability
• Why elite performance isn’t about intensity—it’s about consistency

This one hit a nerve for a reason.

Listen Here

Unlearning to Realign Purpose and Scale with Francesca Cortesi

From working in fashion to leading one of Sweden’s most successful real estate IPOs, Francesca Cortesi has lived a rare kind of career evolution.

But what makes her story powerful isn’t the title—it’s the inner work:

Unlearning what success used to mean in order to lead with purpose at scale.

In this episode, Francesca shares:

• How to realign your leadership with your purpose
• Why unlearning is essential at every growth stage
• What it actually takes to scale a company into the public markets

One of my favorite conversations on personal evolution and bold leadership.

Listen Here

Now Is The Time To Unlearn, and AI

AI is not going away. But neither is leadership.

And the executives who win the next decade will be the ones who learn to use AI not as a gimmick, but as a gear shift.

You need to stop dabbling with prompts — but in reshaping your systems of leadership, decision-making and communication.

I’ve learned so much over the last number of years optimizing my productivity work stake, building and launching products.

And it’s only the beginning.

To leading smarter,

Barry