by Nick Leighton, author of The AI Effect, and founder of Exactly Where You Want To Be
Let’s skip the “AI is the future” fluff, shall we?
AI is the now. It’s the team member you didn’t hire, the intern who never sleeps, and the market force already reshaping the businesses we run. And for those of us crazy enough to own, lead, or scale something in this decade — whether it’s a marketing agency, coaching practice, or a multi-million-dollar tech platform — there’s one brutal truth we need to embrace:
If we don’t build with AI in mind, we’re building for obsolescence.
The good news? You don’t need to be OpenAI or Amazon to stay ahead. You just need a clear framework, a team that’s not terrified of ChatGPT, and a willingness to evolve how you work.
Here’s how I’m coaching my clients — and living it inside my own businesses — using a five-part playbook to lead in the age of AI: Align, Activate, Amplify, Accelerate, and Govern.
1. ALIGN: If you’re not explaining the “why,” you’re already losing the “how.”
Your team doesn’t need another Slack ping that says “Play around with AI this week.” They need vision. Direction. Permission. Hell, maybe even a little inspiration.
Start by clearly articulating why AI matters to your business.
Is it about saving 10 hours a week per team member? Meeting clients where they already are? Innovating your service line before your competitor does?
In one company I coach, we had the CEO make a short video explaining why integrating AI tools was mission-critical. Guess what happened? Productivity went up. Resistance went down. And the video became part of new hire onboarding.
Pro tip: Set a visible AI adoption goal. Something like, “By Q2, 100% of our team will use AI for at least one weekly workflow.” Make it a KPI. Talk about it in your standups. Normalize it.
Oh, and if you’re not already modeling AI use as a leader? You’re sending the wrong message. Share the prompts you’re using. Talk about the win (and the “wow that went sideways” moments). Visibility creates momentum.
2. ACTIVATE: Stop assuming they’ll figure it out.
Would you hand your team Photoshop and say, “Make something beautiful”? No? Then stop expecting them to magically become prompt engineers or AI power users without training.
Launch role-specific training that focuses on real workflows.
Whether you run a PR agency or a SaaS company, your copywriters, analysts, salespeople, and ops team all have wildly different use cases. Teach them their AI — not just “how to use ChatGPT.”
Create an AI champions network.
Find the curious ones. The tinkerers. The folks who are already using AI and can’t stop talking about it at lunch. Elevate them. Let them host a “Friday AI Jam” or informal show-and-tell sessions.
Experimentation isn’t a luxury — it’s a performance enhancer.
Protect time for teams to test tools. Host no-code hackathons. Make space for discovery, because that’s where innovation lives.
And if you’re a leader who ties performance reviews to innovation (which I recommend)? Bake in AI experimentation. If they use it to improve, reward it.
3. AMPLIFY: Don’t let wins die in Slack threads.
One of the fastest ways to scale AI success? Steal from yourself.
Centralize your AI knowledge.
That one great prompt your sales rep used to close a deal? Save it. That time your assistant automated calendar management with Zapier + GPT? Document it. Create a shared space — Notion, Confluence, Google Doc, whatever — and keep it updated.
Celebrate the micro-wins.
Not every AI success is headline-worthy. But even small wins — “saved 2 hours writing proposals this week!” — build momentum and social proof. Recognize these in team meetings, newsletters, or even casual shout-outs.
Build internal community around AI.
Set up a Slack channel. Host “Prompt & Prosecco” nights. Let your team share prompts, tools, funny AI fails — whatever keeps the vibe alive. Culture drives adoption.
4. ACCELERATE: Kill the bottlenecks before they kill your progress.
You know what slows down AI adoption faster than skepticism? Bureaucracy.
Remove access barriers.
If it takes 3 weeks and an IT ticket to try a new AI tool, you’ve already lost. Make AI tools accessible. Create a low-friction approval path. Empower experimentation.
Set up a clear intake process for AI ideas.
You need a system — not a suggestion box — for capturing, reviewing, and prioritizing ideas. The best organizations I’ve seen use a form or GPT-powered intake system to capture AI use case ideas and evaluate them quickly.
Establish a cross-functional AI council.
Sound fancy? It’s not. Just create a small group that can say “yes” or “not yet” to promising ideas. Give them the power to fast-track stuff. Governance without the grind.
Reward success with freedom.
When a team uses AI to save 20 hours/month? Let them reinvest that time into innovation. Don’t punish them with more admin. The best carrot is trust and autonomy.
5. GOVERN: Guardrails, not gatekeeping.
AI governance doesn’t have to be an Excel sheet no one reads. It should be practical, flexible, and empowering.
Create a one-page responsible AI guide.
Not a dissertation. One page. What’s safe to try, what’s not, and when to escalate. You can even train a custom GPT on your policy so your team can ask questions in plain language.
Stay current, but not paranoid.
Review governance quarterly. AI tools are evolving — so should your policies. Pull in legal, ops, and functional leads to keep it smart, not stifling.
Balance risk and velocity.
If your AI policy has become the reason innovation is stalling? Time for a reset. Remember, you’re building for speed and safety — not just CYA.
Final Thoughts: You’re not late. But you can’t afford to wait.
The AI age doesn’t reward the biggest. It rewards the boldest.
You don’t need to have it all figured out. You just need to start. Your team will follow when they see you leading with clarity, curiosity, and a little courage.
And if you’re feeling overwhelmed? You’re not alone.
That’s why I created Exactly Where You Want To Be — to help entrepreneurs and agency owners like you lead smarter, scale faster, and build businesses that thrive in the now, not the someday.
Want help building your AI-first leadership strategy? Let’s talk.
Until then… go make friends with your future.
Cheers,
— Nick
PS: If you haven’t yet read my book The AI Effect — it’s the guidebook for PR and marketing leaders navigating this AI shift. A short, sharp, strategy-packed read for anyone who needs to stay relevant and revenue-smart.