AI and Leadership: Build the Courage to Question, Control, and Apply It

How should 21st Century Leader-Managers respond to AI—not with fear, but with disciplined Inquiry and responsible action?

When Developing 21st Century Leader-Manager Character and Qualities was published in South Asia in 2025, I could not have anticipated how quickly AI would move from a strategic concern to a daily leadership challenge. In the book, I addressed the growing fear of AI and urged developing 21st Century Leader-Managers to take proactive Action Steps to understand AI, overcome that fear, and manage its impact within their Spheres of Influence and Control.

A year later, those concerns feel even more relevant. In the news and across social media, AI is often presented in advanced and complex terms that can feel intimidating, even to those who use it daily. I have to discipline myself to “start at the very beginning” and remember that, to become a Player in the world of AI, we must learn to work with it, question it, and apply it responsibly.

When AI appears across government, commerce, robotics, entertainment, and daily work, it can feel overwhelming. So, what should we do with our concerns and the concerns of others as they arise? I have decided to get closer to the “enemy” rather than avoid it. As the saying goes, “Keep your friends close and your potential enemies closer.”

I was already using the Inquiry Question Set extensively in my work: Who, What, When, Where, How, Why, At What Cost, and How do you Know? I began using AI the same way—asking specific questions, testing the answers, and then asking better follow-up questions.

Over time, I learned how to use AI to support and strengthen my own work.

I remained honest with myself—internally authentic—and continued asking, “Am I using AI, or is it using me?” When the answer was unclear, I inserted my own perspective until the final product reflected my position, not simply the position of AI. If disciplined Inquiry led me to accept an AI-supported view, then I made that view my own through reflection rather than passive acceptance.

Call to Action - A discussion remains only a discussion unless it leads to action. As readers of this blog, I ask four things of you:

1. Start with Inquiry. When an issue or concern arises, ask yourself why it matters. Identify your Core Concern. Put it in writing, because “if it isn’t in writing, it doesn’t exist.”

2. Build your Action Plan. Based on your Core Concern, drill down with further Inquiry. Ask, “What can be done?” Use the AI response to help create your How—your Action Plan. Then ask how you will know whether it is producing your Intended Result.

3. Enroll your Key Players. Identify the people you need onboard to execute and manage your Action Plan. Undertake the responsibility of Knowledge-Transfer by sharing how you use AI in your daily work and how they might use it as well.

4. Sustain the Strategic Conversation. Begin a weekly Strategic Conversation with your Key Players on the evolution of AI within their individual and collective Spheres of Influence and Control. Identify positive and negative experiences together. Always end by asking, “So, what are we going to do about this?” That question creates the next step.

Reference Summary - This blog is grounded in the leadership and management language developed through the author’s 2025 work, Developing 21st Century Leader-Manager Character and Qualities. Its central references include proactive Action Steps, disciplined Inquiry, Core Concern, Action Plan, Intended Result, Key Players, Knowledge-Transfer, Strategic Conversation, and Spheres of Influence and Control.

Together, these terms frame AI as a leadership and management challenge to be approached through authenticity, action, responsibility, and practical control—not as a distant technical threat or a force to be passively accepted.

If you respond to this Call to Action, I invite you to share your experience on the blog page so others can learn from it as well. I can also be reached directly at ehansen@aihg.us.

What is one AI-related Core Concern within your Sphere of Influence and Control?

Blog Summary - This blog calls 21st Century Leader-Managers to meet the rise of AI with courage, curiosity, and disciplined action. Leaders are encouraged to bring AI into their Spheres of Influence and Control, using Inquiry to uncover Core Concerns, shape Action Plans, and test whether those plans are producing Intended Results. The message is practical and empowering: AI should not replace human judgment; it should strengthen it when questioned, guided, and applied authentically. In doing so, leaders can move from apprehension to agency and help shape an AI-enabled future grounded in courage, wisdom, and human responsibility.