If you’d told me a few years ago that I’d be sitting down to write a blog about artificial intelligence — and actually using AI to help me shape it — I’m not sure I would have believed you. Like many people, I watched the conversation from a distance at first. It felt like something happening “out there,” in tech companies and innovation labs, not something that would ever sit alongside the heart-led work I do with leaders, teams, and women in mid-life.

But I’ve always been curious. And long before I actively used AI, I found myself leaning in, asking questions, wanting to understand.

Last month, I decided to put that curiosity to the test. I ran a poll on both LinkedIn and Instagram — two platforms I use very differently. The algorithms weren’t on my side on LinkedIn, but Instagram didn’t fail me. The results were split right down the middle: 50 % of respondents were using AI daily, and the other 50 % weren’t using it yet but were curious about how it might support their work or home life.

That got me thinking… and then, truthfully, I went down a bit of a rabbit hole.

I joined webinars, listened to talks, attended workshops, asked questions in groups I’m part of, and had conversations with clients. I wanted to understand not just how AI could help us, but how people were feeling about it. And the responses ranged from excitement to fear, from relief to resistance. Even my kids had mixed views — though my youngest has since started using AI to help him review his mock exam papers. It saved him time and gave him real insight into how he could strengthen his answers.

The more I explored, the clearer it became: AI isn’t going away. And whether we choose to engage with it or not, it is shaping the world leaders are navigating — right now.

But here’s the real question for me, and perhaps for you too:

How do we use AI in a way that supports clarity, confidence, connection and ease — without losing the humanity that sits at the heart of good leadership?

Because leadership is changing. But it doesn’t mean we have to.

The Environmental Pause We Can’t Ignore

Before we talk about possibility, we have to acknowledge the discomfort.

AI comes with an environmental cost: the energy used to power data centres, the water required to cool them, the invisible footprint behind every prompt, search, or training model. As someone who feels deeply connected to nature — who notices the changing seasons on dog walks, who sees the small but significant shifts in our climate — I can’t ignore that.

And I know I’m not alone.

In my conversations with leaders, this is one of the biggest concerns:

“If we’re meant to be building sustainable organisations, how do we justify using something that consumes so much energy?”

It’s a valid question.
But here’s the thing we often forget: most modern technology carries an environmental cost. Zoom meetings, cloud storage, endless email chains, streaming services — none of these are carbon-neutral either.

This isn’t about choosing between “good” and “bad” tools.
It’s about mindful use.
Intentionality.
Choice.

If AI helps you reduce wasted time, cut unnecessary meetings, streamline processes, and make better decisions — its footprint may be smaller than the alternative.

Technology isn’t inherently the enemy.
Excess is.

What the Data tells - and why it matters

When I started looking into the research, I wasn’t trying to turn myself into an AI expert. I simply wanted to understand the landscape we’re all stepping into. And what I found was surprisingly grounding.

AI isn’t a futuristic idea anymore — it’s already here, quietly shaping the UK economy. Recent studies suggest that AI-related activity is now worth almost £24 billion, and the number of people working in AI roles has risen sharply in the last year. That alone tells us this shift isn’t hypothetical; it’s already unfolding around us.

Some forecasts go further, suggesting AI could boost the UK economy by up to £550 billion over the next decade. Not because everything will be automated, but because the way we work will evolve — roles will shift, tasks will change, and new opportunities will emerge.

And yes, most jobs will be touched by AI in some way. Current estimates suggest around 80%.
Not replaced — impacted. There’s an important difference.

It’s natural for figures like that to stir up uncertainty. But when we zoom out, we can see a familiar pattern. We’ve experienced big shifts before. We adapted to computers in the 80s. We recalibrated through Brexit. We moved entire organisations online almost overnight during Covid. In each case, we moved through uncertainty, resistance, learning, and eventually — a new normal.

And this moment is no different.

The Change Curve: We Adapted Then — We’ll Adapt Again

As leaders we are intimately familiar with change: the twisty, unsettling, exciting, messy journey from the “old way” to the “new way”. The change-curve model (from denial → resistance → exploration → commitment) is not new.

Think back:

• The common introduction of computers in the workplace in the 1990s, resisted at the time and yet today we don’t blink at having a laptop or spreadsheet.

• The shift that came with globalisation and digital communication (the kind that shapes how we work today).

• More recently, the change of the COVID‑19 pandemic: when we went from “office-only” to “remote/hybrid overnight”. We adapted. We invented, learned, changed.

• The Brexit moment: structural, political, emotional — requiring organisations and people to flex, recalibrate, re-learn.

These moments prove something: humans adapt. Organisations adapt. Culture adapts.

The shift that comes with AI isn’t wholly different. Yes, the scale and speed may feel faster. Yes, the unknown may feel bigger. But the pattern is the same.

When we name the fear, hold the uncertainty, lean into exploration, we shorten the curve from resistance to commitment. Because fear reduces when we understand.

My Own Turning Point: From Overwhelm to Ownership

When I left my permanent role in the NHS after burnout, one of the things I promised myself was that I wouldn’t replicate the same patterns in my business. I wanted spaciousness. The kind that allows ideas to breathe, decisions to settle, and clarity to rise.

But, like many self-employed leaders, the reality crept in slowly.
Admin.
Emails.
Scheduling.
Updating content.
Writing proposals.
Trying to keep up with everything while still being present for clients, my kids, and my own wellbeing.

One morning, after a particularly grounding walk (and muddy dog), I decided to experiment with an AI tool — just to see what would happen.

It didn’t take over.
It didn’t “do my work for me.”
It simply gave me a place to start.

The ideas I had been circling for days suddenly had shape.
The outline I’d been procrastinating over took form.
What would’ve been a three-hour task turned into 45 minutes — and the rest of the time I spent thinking, refining, and leading.

That was the moment I realised something important:

AI doesn’t remove the need for human leadership; it removes the noise that gets in its way.

So What Does AI Really Mean for Leaders?

Leadership today is complex. Teams are hybrid. Workloads are growing. Expectations are rising. People are burnt-out. Communication is constant. And many leaders — especially women in midlife — are carrying the emotional load of work, home, transitions, and the invisible labour that sits beneath it all.

AI can help.

Not by replacing our thinking, but by supporting it.

Not by taking away the human moments, but by freeing us up to actually have them.

Here’s what I’m seeing in practice (and this is where the nuance matters):

• Leaders are using AI to simplify their planning, not to make decisions for them.

• They’re using it to summarise long reports, not to replace their judgement.

• They’re using it to spark ideas, not to replace their experience.

• They’re using it to reduce admin, not to avoid conversations.

AI is becoming a quiet assistant — one that never gets tired, never rolls its eyes, and never minds being asked the same question more than once.

But it will never replace the qualities that define meaningful leadership: empathy, intuition, courage, clarity, presence, values, and emotional intelligence.

Those remain ours to carry.

Where We Must Stay Human — Always ❤️

AI can help you respond faster.
But it can’t help you listen better.

It can help outline a plan.
But it can’t help you feel the room.

It can help you craft words.
But it can’t tell you when someone on your team is overwhelmed, struggling, on the edge of burnout, or in need of compassion.

Culture is built in the spaces between people.
In the pauses, the check-ins, the shoulder-to-shoulder conversations, the “How are you really?” moments.

Those aren’t things AI can lead.
Those are things people lead.

And this is where the fear of AI “replacing us” softens — because the work that truly matters in leadership is the work AI cannot touch.

A Balanced Way Forward

If we’re going to use AI in leadership, and I believe many of us will - we need a grounded, intentional way of approaching it.

A way that supports clarity and efficiency, while protecting connection, trust, and values.

For me, that looks like:

• Using AI to clear the clutter, not shape the culture.

• Using AI to start the thinking, not finish it.

• Using AI to save time, not speed up life.

• Using AI to streamline work, not replace relationships.

It is entirely possible to embrace AI and stay deeply human and aligned to our values.

In fact, this might be the moment leaders reclaim more humanity than ever — because when AI removes some of the unnecessary noise, what’s left is the work that truly matters.

So What Does This Mean for You?

If you’re a leader, a manager, a freelancer, or someone building a career:

AI won’t make you less human.
But it can give you back the space to be more human.

It can help you focus on:

• meaningful conversations

• values-led decisions

• clarity in complexity

• listening rather than firefighting

• creativity instead of constant output

• leadership that feels connected, not transactional

The future won’t belong to the people who use AI the most. It will belong to the people who use AI consciously — with curiosity, compassion, and intention — and who continue showing up as real, grounded, emotionally intelligent humans.

AI may shine a light.
But you are always the source.

PS. And yes — I did use AI to help me research and structure my thoughts for this blog. Not to write it for me, but to hold the messy middle, shape the structure, and save me a little time so I could focus on the part that matters most: the stories, the meaning, and the human connection behind the words.

References & Further Reading

UK Government – AI Sector Study (2024)
Artificial Intelligence Sector Study outlining revenue, employment growth and economic impact.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/artificial-intelligence-sector-study-2024/artificial-intelligence-sector-study-2024

Tony Blair Institute – The Impact of AI on the Labour Market
Insight report on productivity, time-saving potential and workforce transformation.
https://institute.global/insights/economic-prosperity/the-impact-of-ai-on-the-labour-market

TechUK – Unlocking the Potential of Industrial AI
Forecast of AI’s potential boost to UK GDP by 2035.
https://www.techuk.org/resource/unlocking-the-potential-of-industrial-ai-the-uk-s-path-to-greater-growth-and-productivity.html

Vanguard – AI, Productivity and the Future of Work
Discussion on how AI could impact up to 80% of current job roles.
https://www.vanguard.co.uk/professional/insights/ai-productivity-and-the-future-of-work

The Guardian – Think-Tank Analysis on Job Displacement
Exploration of how AI may displace 1–3 million jobs over time, with modest long-term losses.
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2024/nov/08/ai-may-displace-3m-jobs-but-long-term-losses-relatively-modest-says-thinktank