Something shifted. You can feel it. You just can't name it yet.
Stand Tall & Own It is for women in the second half of life who are high-functioning on the outside and quietly disoriented on the inside. You built your life inside systems you trusted completely — until you realized you couldn't tell what was actually yours from what you'd just learned to navigate well.
Host Andrea Johnson doesn't offer formulas. She offers honest thinking, sharp observation, and the kind of conversation that makes you pull over and sit in your driveway.
1 BIG IDEA AI is a powerful tool—but it should never replace your leadership. When you root your use of tools like ChatGPT in your Core Values, you amplify your clarity without compromising your voice.
5 WAYS TO APPLY THIS
Approach AI like a strategic partner, not a shortcut
Use values-based prompts to clarify decisions, not make them for you
Draft communications that sound like you, then refine with discernment
Upload foundational identity tools (DISC profile, Core Values Blueprint, etc.) to help the tool understand your leadership lens
Remember: You are the one responsible for what you publish, decide, or communicate—not the tool
3 QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF
What’s my current relationship to AI—curious, resistant, reactive?
Where could a tool like ChatGPT save me time without sacrificing thoughtfulness?
What Core Values do I want reflected in every decision or message I share?
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You're listening to Stand Tall and Own It, a podcast for high-performing female leaders who are ready to make an impact by discovering the safety that comes from understanding their own values and exercising their own authority. I'm your host, Andrea Johnson, and I'm here to tell you it is time to just truly be you, my strong friend. It's time to stand tall and own it. Hey there, welcome back to another episode of Stand Tall and Own It. This is the podcast where we equip purpose-driven women to lead with authenticity and impact. I'm your host, Andrea Johnson, the intentional optimist. I have a question for you. Do you remember the first time you ever got on the internet? I do. I mean, you might be too young to say, no, I don't remember. I remember vividly. It was 1994, and I had my very first Yahoo email address, which I still have today, by the way. But this was back when it was basically your ticket to the information superhighway. Except it just didn't feel much like a superhighway to me. It felt more like standing at the edge of some enormous black hole with no map, no flashlight, and no real idea of what to do next. I remember sitting there wondering, what do I even search for? And half the time, whatever I typed in would return basically nothing or one like really random odd result. I felt, I don't know, it felt very underwhelming, confusing. Like maybe the whole thing was just a big empty hallway with too many doors and no labels, you know, kind of like in Severance. And I'll admit it, I gave up. I thought, this is boring. I'd rather read a book. I have no idea what I'm doing. I mean, why on earth are people worried about getting to the end of the internet? I mean, how hard could that be? I really thought that. But fast forward to today, like 20, 21 years later, and the conversation that we're all having around AI, especially tools like ChatGPT. And for many leaders that I work with, the feeling is surprisingly similar. They don't know where to start, they don't know what to ask. Maybe they've tried typing something in, and what they got back felt off or unhelpful or factually inaccurate. So they just backed away because it was easier than trying to learn. I get it. The world of AI is vast, it's powerful, it's a little disorienting, but I'm also super fascinated. I am so fascinated by all the different public discussions about AI, how it could help, where it might hurt, the ethical ramifications of it all, how we're using it, how we shouldn't be using it, and how each generation seems to interact with it a little differently. The truth is, I'm using it very comfortably, quite extensively actually, so I figured it was about time that I started talking about it. Now that's what this episode is about today. I am not here to convince you that AI is the future or your future, or that you should start outsourcing your brain to the machine. Please, from a critical thinker. I'm here to show you how a tool like ChatGPT can help you lead smarter, not harder, and still stay grounded in your values, your voice, and your mission. Because truthfully, AI can't lead. You can, but it can help you get clear, think faster, plan better. And over the course of this four-part series, I'm gonna show you how. Today we're starting with that big picture. We're gonna talk about what AI can and cannot do for purpose-driven leaders like you and me. Three simple ways to start using Chat GPT, that's the one I use, so that's the one I'm gonna talk about right now, without losing your voice, and how to make sure that the leader behind the keyboard is still always calling the shots. Does that sound good? If so, stick with me. Let's get into it. Why does AI belong in your leadership toolkit? Well, I'd like to start by saying AI is not your replacement, it never will be, but it is your support staff. It's not your brain and it's not your judgment, and it's definitely not your values. But it can be an incredibly powerful tool for helping you access, express, and apply those values much more effectively, especially as a leader navigating a world full of decision fatigue, communication overload, and constant pressure to produce. So let's frame it and reframe it right up front. You're not giving up your voice, you're equipping it. You're not outsourcing your leadership, you're enhancing your clarity. That's what we use AI for. Because even in the most intentional leader, we sometimes need a sounding board, a place to explore options without judgment, a way to see the forest when all you're focused on is that one stubborn tree. And that's what Chat GPT has become for me. A kind of thought partner, if you will, that helps me work through decisions, structure plans, and even prepare to communicate with much more clarity. But here's where your core values come in. AI without identity is just noise. But AI with identity, when you know who you are and what you stand for, you get traction. Because once you're clear on your values, you can use AI to help you express them, to reinforce them, and to make decisions that honor them. It's not about efficiency for efficiency's sake, for sure. It's about discernment, creativity, and curiosity. Three things that intentional optimists like you and me hold in very high regard. You get to lead with wisdom, you get to explore with possibility, and you get to do it all without sacrificing who you are in the process. So if you're ready to try using Chat GPT, or you've been circling around it and kind of poking at it like an animal in a cage, and you're not quite sure where to start, here are three simple, meaningful ways to begin. This, of course, is not anywhere near the full playbook. You would not believe if you went and Googled all of the different Chat GPT prompt catalogs that are out there, you would be shocked. I've got one that I keep telling myself I'm gonna walk through and I keep forgetting, or I just don't have the time to do it. But this is not the full playbook playbook. This is the starting line. Think of it as maybe practicing with a tool that reflects who you are, not just what you do. And by the way, when I say the word prompt, if I use that anymore today, I simply mean these are the instructions or the question that you give to Chat GPT. It's how you start the conversation in the little conversation bubble. You type something in like you're talking to a thoughtful assistant, and it just responds. There's no special coding, no jargon required, just a very clear ask. And the first way you could begin using AI today is to clarify your decisions. When you begin a conversation with Chat GPT, you're not handing over your authority, you're asking it for perspective. And let me pause there because that distinction is really important. Perspective is what leaders seek when we're trying to get out of the weeds. It's what we look for when we phone a mentor, ask a team member, or go for a walk to just clear your head. It's not about answers, it's about vision. So here's a simple way to begin. You could ask, what are the long-term outcomes of insert decision or scenario here through the lens of collaboration, sustainability, and transparency? And what you're doing is very, very powerful here. I don't know if you noticed it, but you're not just brainstorming, you're not just asking it for its opinion. You're asking Chat GPT to filter your options for the long-term outcomes of whatever scenario you're talking about. You're asking it to filter your options through what you stand for, not around it. Okay? This gives you clarity, it reveals patterns, it often shows you which path is most aligned before you've even made the choice. You get to stay grounded in your identity while exploring your possibilities. So, in case you didn't notice, when I said, what are the long-term outcomes for this particular scenario through the lens of collaboration, sustainability, and transparency, that is as if those were my core values. Okay? The second way that you could begin using AI today is to communicate really, really thoughtfully. This is one of my favorite uses for Chat GPT because communication, especially in leadership, isn't always about knowing what to say, because a lot of times we know what to say, and I can put bullet points down all day long. The problem is saying it well. Maybe you need to send a really tough message, maybe you're prepping a sensitive conversation, or maybe you're just not sure how to balance honesty with encouragement. So you could begin this way. Hey ChatGPT, help me draft an email that's clear, direct, and grounded in empathy. What you get back won't be perfect, but it'll get you started. You'll see phrasing options, tone shifts, and angles that could be considered. And from there, you just make it sound like you. You're not outsourcing your voice, to be clear again. You're just refining it. You're giving yourself a head start when your energy is low or your emotions are high. I've I've literally got one saved, a chat saved right now where my emotions are very high, and I've typed in a bunch of stuff. I'm like, hold on this information. I'm coming back to you. I just need to get this out of my head, and we'll talk about it when I'm not quite so emotional. Or it might be that the stakes are just too important to risk fumbling through it. I use this kind of thing whenever I need to like make a pitch to a client. I say, this is the client, this is who they are, this is what they do, this is what's important to them, this is what I bring to the table. Help me formulate this in a way that is very thoughtful and creative and can give them a really good understanding. It doesn't embellish anything. It only gives it what I tell it, it only puts in there what I tell it to do, but it's it's just a really good way to keep me from fumbling through my words like I do here sometimes, and just make sure that it's a really professional output, right? And the third way that you could start using AI today, again, this is if you've just never even tried, is planning with intention. This is where using AI gets super practical. If you're leading a team, managing multiple projects, or just trying to carve out a space to think. Planning can feel overwhelming, especially when you value quality over hustle. I am not about hustle for hustle's sake. You could start with something like, hey chat, break GPT, break this project into a realistic weekly plan that honors energy and space for reflection. You'll get a proposed flow, usually with suggested timelines, tasks, or even checkpoints, and then you get to adjust it based on how it works best for you. I did this back in late December of 2024 when, along with my sister and I don't know, about 50 of her friends, I decided to set a goal of walking a thousand miles in 2025. So I plugged in a prompt very much like the one, just like that one right there, saying I wanted Sundays off and I wanted room to do some longer hikes with some friends, and I didn't want to have to make it all up at the end of the year. Boom, done. Shared. And I helped a bunch of other people get past that terrifying hump of how on earth do I walk a thousand miles in a year? Well, it turns out you do it in two to four miles a day at a time. That's it's it's that simple. Just two to four miles a day each week, and you're probably gonna hit a thousand miles in a year. But here's something that can take it a step further. Give AI or Chat GPT some context. Let it learn you. If you want the most helpful, relevant output from ChatGPT, feed it the kind of information that reflects how you lead. You can actually upload documents and it will save it in its memory. If you're on the free version of ChatGPT, and we'll get into this later when we do more of the nuts and bolts pieces of this particular series, but um, if you are on the free version, you can still do that. It just will, it only gives you a limited amount of memory, just like Google or anybody else does. But you can upload things like your disc behavioral assessment, your core values blueprint, or if you haven't done that yet, just an idea of what your core values might be like. Your mission, purpose, or vision statement. Your if you're a business owner, your ideal client profile or business vision. Or if you like to travel, my sister plans all of her travel through Chat GPT, pretty much, the kind of hotels and flights you like when you do that. This kind of identity scaffolding helps the model or AI respond in ways that sound more like you and support what matters most to you. Think of it like this: you might step up to a mirror to look at your face. But in reality, with AI, you're holding up a mirror that expands your entire view. Sometimes the insight you need isn't just about you. It's about what's happening behind you or beside you or just outside your peripheral vision. That's the gift of AI used well. It becomes a reflective surface and a panoramic lens, showing you not just your voice, but your context, your gaps, and your potential paths forward. So for sure, you're not using the tool to replace your leadership. You're using it to expand your perspective and extend your capacity. And just because you can generate a response doesn't mean it represents you. So I want to talk lastly here about making sure that we retain the leader behind the keyboard. AI can say a lot of things, but leadership isn't about volume. It's about out and it's not even about output. It's about discernment. It's about choosing which ideas deserve your attention, which responses reflect your voice, and which decisions truly align with who you are and what you stand for. That's why this conversation matters. I love this quote from John Maxwell, and I think it fits perfectly here. Success is when I add value to myself. Significance is when I add value to others. That's the lens I bring into this space. If I'm using Chat GPT to help me write, think, plan, or reflect, it's to grow me first so that I can then show up with more clarity and then serve others with more focus, wisdom, and impact. And here's the mindset I want you to carry into every AI interaction. Am I letting am I leading the tool or am I letting it lead me? There's a huge difference there. AI should be an assistant, not a replacement. A partner in clarity, not a decision maker. And if it starts driving your voice rather than supporting it, you've handed over more than your task. You've handed over your presence. So here are two questions I recommend you ask yourself every time before you copy, paste, or publish anything generated by ChatGPT. Consider this your disclaimer, okay? Ask yourself, does this reflect who I am?
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Right?
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Because it could be in a voice that really isn't yours. So does it reflect who I am? It will take AI or Chat GPT a little while to learn you, okay? And number two, am I leading the tool or letting it lead me? If either answer gives you pause, stop. Literally pause, rework it, rethink it, or just ask again. Because here's another important reality that we need to say out loud. AI makes mistakes. It literally says that at the bottom of the chat GPT screen. Chat GPT can make mistakes. Please check important information. It is not all-knowing and it is not magical. It is just processing that entire internet, the thing I thought back in 1994 that we could easily get to the end of, way faster than you can. Pulling from everything it's been trained on, filtering it based on your prompt, and reflecting it back to you with the structure and usually pretty decent grammar. But if you're asking it for factual, verifiable information, you still must do your homework. If it's helping you form a message or make a business case or answer a personal question, you should just bring your discernment to the table. Because leadership, true, values-rooted, purpose-driven leadership, doesn't come from a prompt, it comes from you. So never ever forget you are the leader behind the keyboard. That's where your real power lies. Because you're the one with the values. You're the one with the context. You're the one who decides what's true, what's useful, and what's aligned, and what needs to be refined or redirected before it ever sees the light of day. Chat GPT will never be held responsible for what it gives you, my friend, but you will. So that means your discernment matters, your judgment matters, your willingness to pause and say, this doesn't quite sound like me, or this needs more nuance. That's what separates automated content from authentic leadership, and people can tell. All right? AI can support your voice, but it can't replace your wisdom. And it certainly can't carry the responsibility that comes with your influence. So yes, use the tool and please use it well, but lead it, guide it, shape it, not the other way around. The most ethical, impactful, and confident leaders are the ones who don't just wield powerful tools. They know when to question them, revise them, and ultimately own the outcome. So where does that leave us? If you've been curious but hesitant, or if you've dipped a toe into Chat GPT and just felt like maybe it wasn't really you, I hope today's conversation helped you see that using AI as a leader doesn't mean you lose your voice. In fact, it can help you refine your voice. It can help you clarify what you stand for, and it can for sure expand your perspective so that you lead with more intention, not just more output. To help you get started, yes, I've created a free downloadable just for this episode, and it's called the Intentional AI Toolkit. Inside it, you're going to find some simple values-based prompt starters, a checklist of identity documents to upload to ChatGPT to help it know you better faster, and some powerful reflection questions to guide your own use of AI as a purpose-driven leader. You can download it right now at the link in the show notes or on my website. There is a free downloads button right above my head and it will be right at the top of the row. If you've and if you do try even one prompt this week, maybe to clarify a decision or draft a message, I'd love to hear how it goes. DM me on Instagram or LinkedIn, or just send me an email at Andrea at the intentionaloptimist.com. I am always up for a good story. Now, next week we're going to zoom in on what keeps all of this grounded, your core values. This is the anchor episode of the series, the one that reminds you or maybe shows you for the very first time what it looks like to lead with clarity by knowing who you are and what you stand for. Because when you're using a powerful tool like AI, your values are what make sure you're still in charge, not the tech. So if you're wondering how to make sure you're not just using AI well, but using it wisely, this next episode is the one you don't want to miss. For now, stand tall, think for yourself, and own your voice. Until next time.
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