Living On The Edge of Chaos

In this conversation, I speak with Victoria Mensch to explore what “AI transformation” actually requires in real organizations (including schools): a human-centered strategy grounded in process redesign, experimentation, and leadership behaviors that is not hype, tools, or compliance. Victoria shares how Silicon Valley approaches learning through immersion and “experience-based knowledge transfer,” and why that mindset matters now as AI reshapes knowledge work and professional identity. Dr. Mensch, a psychologist and Silicon Valley executive, spent decades working with founders, innovators, and senior teams navigating rapid transformation. She noticed that while many organizations tried to copy Silicon Valley's tools and tactics, few understood its deeper truth: innovation is a mindset and it begins with the leader. A consistent throughline throughout this episode: if we simply use AI to crank out more output, we’ll intensify burnout rather than relieve it. The opportunity is to rebuild workflows and expectations so educators and leaders can reinvest in what’s most human relationships, judgment, creativity, and community.  Topics Discussed Victoria’s work leading executive teams through AI-era change and innovation Why AI adoption fails: people + process misalignment (not “the model wasn’t good enough”) No-code acceleration and what it means for training, governance, and equity of access “Champions,” experimentation, and building momentum without waiting for permission Burnout, identity, and the emotional side of change Concrete “everyday AI” examples: landing pages, personal models, and rapid iteration

We are living in a noise economy. With the rise of AI and the speed of digital media, our attention is constantly being hijacked by clickbait, solicitation, and outrage. But what if we treated our news consumption like a healthy diet? What if we stripped away the commentary and went straight to the primary source? In this episode, I sit down with Kira Shishkin, the founder and CEO of informed, a news concierge service designed to beat misinformation overload. We discuss the philosophy of "media minimalism" and why protecting your attention is the most critical investment you can make as an adult. We also get into the weeds of  the creative and entrepreneurial mindset. Kira shares his personal frameworks for "leveling up" quality of thought from writing to speaking to publishing and offers advice on why "perfect is the enemy of done." Whether you are an educator, a student, or just someone looking to quiet the noise, this conversation offers a blueprint for staying curious and reclaiming your mental space.

When AI shows up in our feeds, it’s usually wrapped in hype, fear, or sales pitches, but rarely in honest stories about being human. In this episode, I sit down with Jackie Celske, a professional storyteller who cares about helping brands and businesses stay human in the age of AI and closing gender confidence gaps in AI adoption. She has rebuilt her life after burnout and now helps organizations use AI in ways that actually serve people instead of crushing them. We talk about why so many AI projects fail, how “boring” problems often hold the most transformative potential, what it means to separate who you are from what you do, and why creating safe spaces, especially for women, to experiment with AI matters more than any new feature.

In this episode I reconnect with two brilliant minds who helped me and many others make sense of what it means to learn, create, and live in an AI-driven world. Dr. Jessica Parker and Dr. Kimberly Becker return to the show to reflect on what’s changed since our first conversation about writing, bravery, and the process of living. Together, we explore what happens after the hype: what they learned from building and closing their startup Moxie, how their thinking about AI and education has evolved, and why they now approach technology with more skepticism, more curiosity, and more humanity. This is a conversation about slowing down, asking better questions, and remembering that writing is thinking and that no algorithm can replace that process.

In this episode, I sit down with Clare Inkseter, who is founder of the The Curiosity Experiment, to explore how curiosity can become a daily practice that transforms learning, leadership, and life. Clare shares how her journey from corporate researcher to curiosity scholar revealed that curiosity isn’t a luxury, it’s a mindset we can train, nurture, and design for. Together, we discuss the tension between curiosity and efficiency, what it means to build “Wonder Wednesdays” into the workplace, and how curiosity can help us navigate technology, AI, and change with greater presence and humanity. According to her LinkedIn bio Clare has been doing some incredible things the last two decades working at the intersection of insight, innovation, psychology, and purpose—leading Horizon 3 projects, running global research, and designing programmes that unlock human potential. Along the way, she has become an MSc-qualified positive psychology practitioner, yoga teacher, and coach.