Fiona Young is founder of Carve, a series of live digital courses for executive assistants to learn AI, create capacity, and develop into a strategic assistant.
In this episode, Fiona talks about the future of the assistant role in the age of artificial intelligence, tips on how to use AI right now, and being open to constant learning and unlearning.
LEADERSHIP QUOTE
If the decisions you make about where you invest your blood, sweat, and tears are not consistent with the person you aspire to be, you’ll never become that person.
– Clayton Christensen
CONNECT WITH FIONA
ABOUT FIONA
Fiona Young is founder of Carve, a series of live digital courses for executive assistants to learn AI, create capacity and develop into a strategic assistant — carving out their career growth in the process.
Before launching Carve, Fiona spent five years leading learning programs at Hive Learning, the b2b peer learning app. She built Hive’s content strategy, led a team of learning designers, and crafted dozens of cohort-based programs (some award-winning) for corporate clients including household names in financial services, consulting, automotive, consumer products and sport.
She previously ran Learning & Development for Blenheim Chalcot, one of the world’s most successful venture builders, overseeing group learning strategy and programs for 3,000 people across 25 ventures.
Fiona started her career as an executive assistant in entrepreneurial businesses.
Fiona is Californian by birth, but a Londoner by choice. When not behind her laptop she’s usually found roaming Hyde Park or eating her way through London’s endless restaurant scene.
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EPISODE TRANSCRIPT
00:00:00.000 –> 00:00:01.740
FIONA: Hi, I am Fiona Young.
00:00:01.800 –> 00:00:06.460
FIONA: I’m the founder of CARVE, and today’s leadership quote comes from Clayton Christensen.
00:00:07.040 –> 00:00:16.760
FIONA: If the decisions you make about where you invest your blood, sweat and tears are not consistent with the person you aspire to be, you’ll never become that person.
00:00:23.010 –> 00:00:30.390
<v SPEAKER_3>The Leader Assistant Podcast exists to encourage and challenge assistants to become confident, game-changing leader assistants.
00:00:38.617 –> 00:00:45.597
JEREMY: Calling all Executive Assistants, are you looking for a way to elevate your skills or earn that promotion you’ve been eyeing?
00:00:46.497 –> 00:00:54.157
JEREMY: Nova Chief of Staff’s Online Certification Course provides you with the knowledge and confidence you need to stand out on the job.
00:00:54.837 –> 00:01:08.597
JEREMY: Whether you want to land your dream position or level up in your current role, Nova’s Self-Paste Course gives you hands-on practice doing what Chiefs of Staff do every day.
00:01:09.297 –> 00:01:15.497
JEREMY: Visit leaderassistant.com/nova to learn more and secure your spot.
00:01:16.077 –> 00:01:20.637
JEREMY: That’s leaderassistant.com/nova.
00:01:21.717 –> 00:01:24.217
JEREMY: Hey, friends, welcome to The Leader Assistant Podcast.
00:01:24.237 –> 00:01:28.057
JEREMY: It’s your host, Jeremy Burrows, and you’re listening to episode 263.
00:01:28.777 –> 00:01:35.977
JEREMY: You can check out the show notes for this conversation at leaderassistant.com/263.
00:01:36.517 –> 00:01:39.057
JEREMY: And I’m speaking with Fiona Young.
00:01:39.137 –> 00:01:44.397
JEREMY: Fiona is founder of CARV, and you can check out CARV at joincarv.com.
00:01:45.217 –> 00:01:47.797
JEREMY: We’ll find out a little bit more about what CARV is.
00:01:47.817 –> 00:01:51.717
JEREMY: But first, Fiona, welcome to the show and tell us where you’re joining us from.
00:01:52.877 –> 00:01:53.697
JEREMY: Thanks, Jeremy.
00:01:53.717 –> 00:01:54.757
FIONA: Thank you for having me.
00:01:55.377 –> 00:02:00.357
FIONA: I am joining from London, England, and West London, specifically Notting Hill.
00:02:02.557 –> 00:02:03.997
JEREMY: And are you from that area?
00:02:05.057 –> 00:02:09.437
FIONA: No, originally from Northern California, from Sacramento and San Francisco Bay Area.
00:02:09.697 –> 00:02:11.197
FIONA: But I’ve lived out here 12 years.
00:02:11.217 –> 00:02:13.097
FIONA: I’m half English, half American.
00:02:13.117 –> 00:02:17.077
FIONA: And I like to say I’m a Californian by birth, but a Londoner by choice.
00:02:17.857 –> 00:02:18.217
JEREMY: Nice.
00:02:18.237 –> 00:02:21.317
JEREMY: So yeah, I was going to ask what brought you across the pond?
00:02:22.557 –> 00:02:23.677
FIONA: Oh, I’ve always loved it here.
00:02:23.697 –> 00:02:30.737
FIONA: I think just being half English, always had more of an affinity as well with my mom’s side of the family compared to my two siblings.
00:02:30.757 –> 00:02:32.957
FIONA: And kind of planned to move out here forever, really.
00:02:32.977 –> 00:02:37.737
FIONA: Thought about coming out here for university and then decided like, who am I kidding?
00:02:37.757 –> 00:02:43.117
FIONA: It’ll be more fun to go to university in Southern California and do the whole big university thing.
00:02:43.137 –> 00:02:50.797
FIONA: And yeah, then I just, when I graduated, I thought, okay, I’m just going to do whatever I can to save up and make this move.
00:02:51.057 –> 00:02:54.657
FIONA: And yeah, when I moved out here 12 years ago, I had nowhere to live.
00:02:54.677 –> 00:02:55.817
FIONA: I had no job.
00:02:55.837 –> 00:02:57.157
FIONA: I didn’t know what I was doing.
00:02:57.177 –> 00:03:02.777
FIONA: I just was like, I have enough money to like tide me over for six months and I’m going to build my life here.
00:03:02.997 –> 00:03:05.157
FIONA: And I did this best decision I ever made.
00:03:05.177 –> 00:03:07.077
JEREMY: That’s great.
00:03:07.177 –> 00:03:07.837
JEREMY: That’s great.
00:03:07.857 –> 00:03:13.077
JEREMY: So what is your favorite thing to do in London when you’re not working?
00:03:14.237 –> 00:03:15.557
FIONA: I am a huge foodie.
00:03:15.617 –> 00:03:21.197
FIONA: So I have to say definitely eating out, enjoying all the fine dining in London.
00:03:21.437 –> 00:03:28.857
FIONA: But I also love cooking and I also love high intensity workouts to sort of work off some of the lovely eating that I do.
00:03:30.117 –> 00:03:31.877
JEREMY: Sounds like a good pair.
00:03:32.597 –> 00:03:33.777
FIONA: Balance, yeah.
00:03:33.937 –> 00:03:35.857
JEREMY: Balance it out.
00:03:35.877 –> 00:03:37.117
JEREMY: So tell us about your career then.
00:03:39.097 –> 00:03:42.637
JEREMY: Where did you start off your career after university?
00:03:43.177 –> 00:03:47.417
JEREMY: How did you get into the assistant role and then talk to us about your journey to where you’re at now?
00:03:48.677 –> 00:03:52.357
FIONA: Yeah, I really fell into it like so many assistants I talked to.
00:03:52.377 –> 00:03:54.777
FIONA: I graduated with a degree in economics.
00:03:54.837 –> 00:03:58.117
FIONA: I thought I was going to go get a job in finance in San Francisco.
00:03:58.537 –> 00:04:04.877
FIONA: Graduated at the worst point in the recession 2008 and quickly realized that wasn’t on the cards.
00:04:05.217 –> 00:04:20.277
FIONA: And I found a kind of randomly just came across a job as an assistant working in association management public policy in Sacramento, where government is really big business.
00:04:20.297 –> 00:04:23.877
FIONA: And so I set off in that role, absolutely loved it.
00:04:23.897 –> 00:04:25.197
FIONA: I love the variety of it.
00:04:25.197 –> 00:04:29.237
FIONA: I just had so much opportunity to explore and dabble and do different things.
00:04:29.617 –> 00:04:36.317
FIONA: So everything from joining in on board meetings, taking minutes, planning large scale events and conferences.
00:04:36.337 –> 00:04:39.017
FIONA: I did a bunch of business development.
00:04:39.037 –> 00:04:40.317
FIONA: I did some marketing work.
00:04:40.337 –> 00:04:41.617
FIONA: I did all sorts of different stuff.
00:04:42.177 –> 00:04:49.717
FIONA: And so then when I moved to London, I thought, OK, I’m going to try to find a job as an EA and ended up working for a venture capitalist.
00:04:51.077 –> 00:04:56.057
FIONA: And interestingly enough, my mom was actually an EA to venture capitalists in Silicon Valley.
00:04:56.077 –> 00:04:59.477
FIONA: So I’m a second generation EA in VC.
00:05:00.757 –> 00:05:13.817
FIONA: And again, like just loved that role because I had this sort of front row seats to seeing how businesses are built, the messy, chaotic process of starting businesses, of funding businesses, trying to scale businesses as well.
00:05:14.497 –> 00:05:18.357
FIONA: And just worked with some of the smartest people I’ve ever met there.
00:05:18.717 –> 00:05:29.357
FIONA: And yeah, so pretty soon after I started working for the venture capitalist in London back in 2012, I picked up some learning and development stuff off the side of my desk.
00:05:29.377 –> 00:05:32.477
FIONA: He basically said to me, listen, I have this vision for a learning program.
00:05:32.517 –> 00:05:34.277
FIONA: I want you to help me build it and run it.
00:05:34.297 –> 00:05:36.817
FIONA: And I said, right on, you know, I love learning.
00:05:36.837 –> 00:05:38.237
FIONA: This is one of my biggest passions.
00:05:39.037 –> 00:05:46.097
FIONA: And that started what ended up being a decade long career in learning development and learning design.
00:05:47.557 –> 00:05:54.937
FIONA: And so it morphed into after working for him for a few years, it morphed into a full time role, leading learning and development for a venture group.
00:05:55.297 –> 00:05:59.557
FIONA: Three thousand people, 25 ventures was literally the first time anyone had done that role.
00:06:00.117 –> 00:06:05.357
FIONA: So I was writing the strategy from a blank sheet, which was a huge challenge.
00:06:05.697 –> 00:06:14.617
FIONA: And then I ended up spending really the last five years before launching my business, Carve, working for a business called Hive Learning.
00:06:15.257 –> 00:06:21.937
FIONA: And I was building, you know, kind of client facing, building digital learning programs for blue chip clients.
00:06:21.957 –> 00:06:28.417
FIONA: So clients like the Olympics, Jaguar Land Rover, Barclays, which is the biggest bank in the UK.
00:06:28.437 –> 00:06:32.617
FIONA: So really, really big clients and trying to do really cutting edge digital learning.
00:06:32.917 –> 00:06:42.697
FIONA: So how do you bring together the best of face to face of kind of communities of practice with the best of digital learning, you know, making it more scalable, more affordable for companies.
00:06:43.577 –> 00:06:50.557
FIONA: And that’s something I’m really passionate about is taking a really high impact peer learning approach to everything in the learning space.
00:06:51.257 –> 00:07:04.077
FIONA: So yeah, so that all led me really here because after years of working primarily in leadership development, so really the programs I was building for the last decade were about helping leaders and managers become better leaders and managers.
00:07:04.717 –> 00:07:15.797
FIONA: I got a bit disenchanted just thinking about how much money corporates invest in their leaders and yet how little they invest in assistance and reflecting on my time as an assistant, I had no formal development.
00:07:15.817 –> 00:07:18.037
FIONA: And that’s something I hear from assistants all the time.
00:07:18.817 –> 00:07:30.357
FIONA: And so it just got me thinking like maybe I’m the perfect person to go and build something in this space because of my unique experience and background and what I’ve been doing the last 10 years in the digital learning space.
00:07:31.057 –> 00:07:32.757
FIONA: And so I set out to do that.
00:07:32.777 –> 00:07:37.397
FIONA: I thought, you know, a year ago, I thought I was building something in EA career development space.
00:07:37.997 –> 00:07:44.837
FIONA: And when ChatGPT came out and blew up the internet, you know, I became obsessed with it along with a lot of other people.
00:07:44.857 –> 00:07:50.617
FIONA: And as I got really interested, I started to believe more and more, actually, this is a stepping stone.
00:07:50.637 –> 00:07:56.417
FIONA: These AI tools are a stepping stone towards career development because they’re going to fundamentally change this role.
00:07:57.057 –> 00:08:13.357
FIONA: And if you can really wrap your arms around them and get all the benefit you can out of them to use these tools to shortcut admin, basically, you create capacity in order to take on more strategic work and carve out your own career progression.
00:08:13.877 –> 00:08:16.117
FIONA: So that’s where really it all came from.
00:08:16.297 –> 00:08:30.217
FIONA: You know, I think that for me, helping EA learn about AI, which is what I’m doing through Carve, is really ultimately helping them further their careers in that larger goal and purpose that I feel like I have for myself in this space.
00:08:31.337 –> 00:08:31.937
JEREMY: That’s great.
00:08:31.957 –> 00:08:51.597
JEREMY: So before we get into a little bit more on the AI and specifics on what you provide with Carve, what was maybe your number one learning, pun intended, when it came to learning and development for the corporate setting?
00:08:51.737 –> 00:09:31.417
JEREMY: So, you know, were there different things that throughout those both organizations, Hive and the other one, where it’s like, hey, you know, maybe a practical learning was short, shorter than five minute videos once a week or is a really good way for corporate team members to learn and develop or it requires doing it together as a group or what was maybe some practical things as assistants listening or thinking, okay, I got to convince my executive to invest in our assistant team.
00:09:32.057 –> 00:09:44.957
JEREMY: And I’ve got to also convince them that and present a business case that, hey, this development not only is valuable, but this type of development is proven to work better than other types.
00:09:45.017 –> 00:09:54.737
JEREMY: So is there any general professional development styles or tips that you can share from your years in that world?
00:09:55.897 –> 00:09:57.137
FIONA: Yeah, that’s a great question.
00:09:57.157 –> 00:10:02.337
FIONA: And there’s also there’s a lot of evidence that corporate learning is really deeply broken.
00:10:03.177 –> 00:10:07.397
FIONA: The rate of learning transfer, this is such a L&D speak, so sorry, bear with me.
00:10:07.417 –> 00:10:14.557
FIONA: The rate of learning transfer, meaning how much do people actually take on from any course that they’re doing?
00:10:14.837 –> 00:10:17.857
FIONA: You know, does this lead to a change in knowledge?
00:10:17.877 –> 00:10:19.577
FIONA: Does this lead to a change in skills?
00:10:19.597 –> 00:10:21.197
FIONA: Does this lead to a change in behavior?
00:10:21.597 –> 00:10:26.197
FIONA: When you look at online learning, that rate of learning transfer is about 12%.
00:10:26.657 –> 00:10:32.457
FIONA: So only about 12% of learning that happens online leads to any sort of change.
00:10:32.817 –> 00:10:34.297
FIONA: That’s staggeringly bad.
00:10:34.317 –> 00:10:42.897
FIONA: You know, in any part of business, you would expect, you know, you wouldn’t just get a 12% hit rate on something, right?
00:10:43.017 –> 00:10:48.037
FIONA: So yeah, I think it’s a great question to think about what makes for great learning at work.
00:10:48.177 –> 00:10:55.197
FIONA: And absolutely a few of the principles that I still follow and really deeply believe in.
00:10:55.397 –> 00:10:57.277
FIONA: One is that we learn best together.
00:10:57.377 –> 00:11:05.417
FIONA: This idea of peer learning, cohort-based learning in small groups where you actually get to know other people and you’re on a shared journey together.
00:11:05.477 –> 00:11:07.017
FIONA: I think that’s really critical.
00:11:07.377 –> 00:11:11.777
FIONA: You know, and I contrast that with a lot of online learning is what I like to call lonely learning.
00:11:12.037 –> 00:11:19.857
FIONA: You know, you’re sitting at your laptop, you’re clicking through some stuff, you know, it’s not engaging or inspiring and it doesn’t actually push you to change.
00:11:19.877 –> 00:11:21.057
FIONA: And that’s what really matters.
00:11:21.797 –> 00:11:24.557
FIONA: I would say as well, oftentimes it’s just not practical.
00:11:25.177 –> 00:11:30.097
FIONA: And what I mean by that is there’s like a lot of, you know, content out in the world.
00:11:30.097 –> 00:11:33.377
FIONA: And even like I would put Ted Talks in this category.
00:11:33.397 –> 00:11:34.677
FIONA: Like I love a good Ted Talk.
00:11:34.697 –> 00:11:36.537
FIONA: I’ve watched a lot of Ted Talks in my time.
00:11:37.717 –> 00:11:38.857
FIONA: But they’re not practical.
00:11:38.877 –> 00:11:40.457
FIONA: They’re very high level and very inspiring.
00:11:40.477 –> 00:11:43.657
FIONA: And there’s obviously there’s some value and benefit in that.
00:11:43.677 –> 00:11:55.297
FIONA: But when we’re thinking about corporate learning, we always need to be thinking about how can we make this really, really practical, giving people the actual action steps that they can take to change.
00:11:55.717 –> 00:11:58.477
FIONA: Practically, how can you use this in your day to day?
00:11:58.517 –> 00:12:02.617
FIONA: What are the two things you could do today or the five things you could do this week?
00:12:03.077 –> 00:12:06.057
FIONA: And I think that is missing in so much learning.
00:12:06.077 –> 00:12:07.477
FIONA: It’s just too theoretical.
00:12:08.577 –> 00:12:16.017
FIONA: And then I think as well, like you need to have learning content and programs that are constantly evolving.
00:12:16.657 –> 00:12:22.177
FIONA: Agility is something I’m sure from the business you’re working in, like you work agile, I imagine.
00:12:22.477 –> 00:12:30.537
FIONA: Like certainly from having grown up in entrepreneurial businesses and in the venture world, agility is such a key principle, the way that I’ve worked everywhere.
00:12:31.177 –> 00:12:36.137
FIONA: And I think when you look at learning so often, stuff is just really stale and out of date.
00:12:36.357 –> 00:12:41.697
FIONA: Someone recorded it once, like really high production value, talking head videos, for instance.
00:12:41.937 –> 00:12:47.397
FIONA: And then they’re sort of trapped with it because they spent like thousands and thousands of dollars producing it.
00:12:48.057 –> 00:12:52.917
FIONA: Actually, you know, the production value making like slick stuff isn’t that important.
00:12:52.937 –> 00:12:59.757
FIONA: What’s much more important is it for it to be highly relevant to the person you’re delivering it to and to be totally up to date.
00:13:00.177 –> 00:13:05.717
FIONA: So, you know, I think having that fresh kind of constantly evolving is a really important principle as well.
00:13:07.277 –> 00:13:21.397
JEREMY: Super great tips and it makes me feel better about my videos and my trainings that I’ve done because I generally don’t focus on the high produced stuff and I just focus on trying to be helpful.
00:13:21.417 –> 00:13:23.017
JEREMY: So I’m glad that I’m doing the right thing.
00:13:23.057 –> 00:13:25.877
FIONA: And I think authenticity goes a long way too, right?
00:13:25.897 –> 00:13:28.697
FIONA: I think if you’re authentic, you’re presenting practical tips.
00:13:29.037 –> 00:13:34.537
FIONA: People don’t mind if you’ve done a scrappy job of just filming yourself on a loom or whatever these days.
00:13:34.557 –> 00:13:36.037
FIONA: You don’t need to have perfection.
00:13:36.057 –> 00:13:44.937
FIONA: And in some ways, I think in the age of AI, you know, maybe a little bit of the human authentic, like imperfect quality is actually better.
00:13:44.957 –> 00:13:47.857
FIONA: And you’ll realize, oh, this isn’t that person’s avatar talking at me.
00:13:47.877 –> 00:13:53.717
FIONA: This is a real human who makes mistakes and says, um, and you know, and filler words like that, right?
00:13:56.917 –> 00:13:57.277
JEREMY: Cool.
00:13:57.297 –> 00:13:58.437
JEREMY: Well, let’s dive in.
00:13:58.457 –> 00:13:59.217
JEREMY: That’s super helpful.
00:13:59.237 –> 00:14:00.237
JEREMY: Thanks for sharing there.
00:14:00.437 –> 00:14:14.657
JEREMY: And let’s dive into, um, you know, carve specifically, you know, a series of live digital courses for executive assistants to learn AI, create capacity and develop into a strategic assistant.
00:14:15.237 –> 00:14:24.477
JEREMY: So, you know, tell us a little bit about, you know, if I’m an assistant right now and I want to learn about AI, what’s a good place to start?
00:14:29.922 –> 00:14:32.502
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00:14:33.422 –> 00:14:41.102
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00:14:41.742 –> 00:14:53.242
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00:14:53.922 –> 00:14:56.182
<v SPEAKER_4>It’s the perfect next step for executive assistants.
00:14:56.902 –> 00:15:01.962
<v SPEAKER_4>Head to leaderassistant.com/nova to learn more, grab the syllabus and enroll today.
00:15:06.562 –> 00:15:11.242
FIONA: Yeah, I think absolutely the best place to start is actually in your personal life.
00:15:11.482 –> 00:15:20.682
FIONA: So I know a lot of companies right now have, you know, policies or don’t have policies and are sort of scrambling, trying to figure out what their policy around AI is.
00:15:21.042 –> 00:15:31.362
FIONA: So when I talk to assistants, I oftentimes start by just saying, you know what, nothing is stopping you from downloading the Chat GPT app on your phone and starting to use this in your personal life.
00:15:31.422 –> 00:15:33.482
FIONA: So don’t put any personal details in there.
00:15:33.882 –> 00:15:37.442
FIONA: You know, don’t get yourself into any trouble on a data privacy perspective.
00:15:37.902 –> 00:15:48.662
FIONA: But, you know, even for things like if you want to be healthier, if you want to be fitter, if you want to build a meditation habit, you know, Chat GPT is a powerful, powerful tool.
00:15:48.682 –> 00:15:54.742
FIONA: These AI chatbots, large language models are incredibly powerful for personalized learning in particular.
00:15:55.342 –> 00:15:57.522
FIONA: And so help it to help you.
00:15:57.542 –> 00:16:16.822
FIONA: It also has some pretty incredible functionality for things like, you know, upload a picture of the contents of your refrigerator and ask it to give you some ideas of ways you can use up what you have to reduce food waste, which is something I think about a lot because I feel like I’m constantly throwing stuff away that I should have figured out a way to eat.
00:16:16.842 –> 00:16:17.162
FIONA: Right.
00:16:17.762 –> 00:16:33.602
FIONA: And so I always say, you know, like, start in your personal life because even if you think this has nothing to do with what I’m doing at work, you’ll soon start to understand the real strength of these platforms and how they might begin to help you at work too.
00:16:34.022 –> 00:16:45.422
FIONA: And they’ll also help you make the case if you don’t have permission to use them yet at work, you know, to be able to speak the language of AI to your boss or to your InfoSec team and say, hey, listen, I’m getting a lot of value out of this at home.
00:16:45.502 –> 00:16:49.462
FIONA: And I think that this would be an incredible tool for me at work too.
00:16:49.942 –> 00:16:53.602
FIONA: What can I do to get access to it or how can I make sure I’m using it safely here?
00:16:53.962 –> 00:16:56.362
FIONA: So I think that’s an ideal place to start.
00:16:56.502 –> 00:17:05.902
FIONA: And, you know, and I suggest using an AI chatbot because they are just so, you know, the amount of different things you can do with them is just endless.
00:17:06.402 –> 00:17:09.442
FIONA: And they’re also very, very user friendly to get started with.
00:17:10.162 –> 00:17:20.362
FIONA: And the skills that you’ll learn as you use them around prompting, for instance, like how to get the best out of these tools will serve you across other AI tools, too.
00:17:20.382 –> 00:17:28.102
FIONA: So for instance, if you have AI functionality within a calendar tool or within a project management tool, all the same principles are the same.
00:17:28.162 –> 00:17:31.922
FIONA: And so it will help you moving forward regardless of what tools you end up taking on.
00:17:33.802 –> 00:17:34.242
JEREMY: Love it.
00:17:34.262 –> 00:17:34.822
JEREMY: Great tips.
00:17:34.842 –> 00:17:36.462
JEREMY: So what’s your favorite one right now?
00:17:36.482 –> 00:17:39.782
JEREMY: Or maybe your favorite, you mentioned taking a picture of your fridge, stuff like that.
00:17:40.382 –> 00:17:47.182
JEREMY: What’s maybe a recent prompt or recent task or use case that you’ve applied AI to?
00:17:48.682 –> 00:17:51.582
FIONA: Well, one that I love is cultural nuances.
00:17:52.102 –> 00:18:02.642
FIONA: So so often we’re working with folks in different geographies and you might be writing out an email, especially if it’s on behalf of an executive and thinking, oh my gosh, am I going to offend someone?
00:18:02.882 –> 00:18:04.942
FIONA: You know, this is to someone say in Japan.
00:18:04.962 –> 00:18:08.762
FIONA: And I know that their cultural norms around communication are very different than they are in the West.
00:18:09.342 –> 00:18:15.202
FIONA: So you can just copy paste that into ChatGPT and ask, how would this land with someone in Japan?
00:18:15.222 –> 00:18:16.002
FIONA: Is this appropriate?
00:18:16.022 –> 00:18:19.222
FIONA: Is there anything I should be worried about, concerned about, mindful of?
00:18:19.642 –> 00:18:22.542
FIONA: And I would say you can also use this in your personal life.
00:18:22.582 –> 00:18:24.442
FIONA: So you know, I’m based in London.
00:18:24.542 –> 00:18:26.482
FIONA: I’m obviously American by birth.
00:18:27.322 –> 00:18:33.502
FIONA: I have a friend here who is also from abroad and was expecting a baby last year.
00:18:33.662 –> 00:18:35.922
FIONA: And I said to her, listen, I’ll host your baby shower.
00:18:36.862 –> 00:18:41.342
FIONA: And she sort of said to me, well, you know, our baby shower is really a thing here in the UK.
00:18:41.362 –> 00:18:44.542
FIONA: You know, I don’t really know the norms around gift giving.
00:18:44.562 –> 00:18:48.842
FIONA: And I said to her, listen, they’re definitely more of an American thing than a British thing.
00:18:48.862 –> 00:18:56.882
FIONA: But I think it’s really whatever goes, you know, then I thought to myself, you know, started asking around to friends, British friends of mine, what do you think about this?
00:18:56.902 –> 00:18:59.862
FIONA: What are the norms around gift giving for expectant mothers?
00:19:00.882 –> 00:19:07.202
FIONA: And, you know, I decided actually, I’m just going to ask ChatGPT because I didn’t really get a straight answer from any of my friends.
00:19:07.702 –> 00:19:10.522
FIONA: And I got such a better answer from ChatGPT.
00:19:10.582 –> 00:19:20.762
FIONA: So, you know, sometimes these like weird little cultural nuances that even after like living, you know, basically my whole adulthood in the UK, I still can’t really tell you some of these norms, right?
00:19:21.162 –> 00:19:25.682
FIONA: So that’s one that I think is really, you know, is helpful both at work and in your personal life.
00:19:26.422 –> 00:19:33.822
FIONA: But another one I would say that EA’s I’m talking to are loving as well is using a tool like ChatGPT as a concierge.
00:19:34.102 –> 00:19:51.582
FIONA: So sometimes, you know, you have a really specific need for like a restaurant or a hotel for a fussy executive or very specific meeting, for instance, okay, you know, my boss is going to be traveling, they’re going to be in New York City next week, and they have a business dinner, but it’s on a Monday night.
00:19:51.962 –> 00:19:56.362
FIONA: Can you give me some ideas for restaurants that are in Soho, New York City?
00:19:56.902 –> 00:20:06.262
FIONA: You can even give it, you know, a specific geography within that specific streets that are appropriate for a work dinner and that are open on a Monday and that take reservations, for instance.
00:20:06.642 –> 00:20:23.062
FIONA: So you’re getting so specific where if you just look up Soho, New York City restaurants, I mean, I think you and I both know you can spend an hour sort of sifting through and trying to work out what is the best solution here was a tool like ChatGPT will present you with like three options that hit all the criteria that you give it.
00:20:23.342 –> 00:20:24.422
FIONA: So that’s pretty powerful.
00:20:25.422 –> 00:20:26.302
JEREMY: Wow, that is great.
00:20:26.322 –> 00:20:26.602
JEREMY: Yeah.
00:20:27.442 –> 00:20:28.182
JEREMY: Super helpful.
00:20:28.202 –> 00:20:39.562
JEREMY: So what about the the assistants listening that hear all of this like, Oh, you know, this ChatGPT did a better job than maybe even I could.
00:20:41.602 –> 00:20:48.162
JEREMY: What are your thoughts on the future of the assistant role in this age of artificial intelligence?
00:20:49.582 –> 00:20:50.742
FIONA: Yeah, it’s really interesting.
00:20:50.822 –> 00:20:58.382
FIONA: I mean, what I’m hearing from assistants, I’m talking to assistants every week about AI, I’ve spoken to 150 assistants about AI in the last six months.
00:20:59.242 –> 00:21:02.402
FIONA: And I’m hearing emotions are really all over the shop.
00:21:02.422 –> 00:21:14.262
FIONA: And it’s interesting, actually, a study just came out, the state of AI report from Deloitte just in January 2024, that tracked what the emotions are around AI at work.
00:21:14.282 –> 00:21:17.242
FIONA: And it totally mirrored what I’m hearing.
00:21:17.582 –> 00:21:26.362
FIONA: Mostly it’s excitement, but it’s also worry and apprehension, a bit of wariness, you know, it’s like hopefulness.
00:21:26.482 –> 00:21:29.902
FIONA: But you know, that sort of tinged with some more negative emotions, too.
00:21:29.922 –> 00:21:34.202
FIONA: And I think there is this question of, what will this mean for my role?
00:21:34.222 –> 00:21:36.022
FIONA: And it’s totally understandable.
00:21:36.042 –> 00:21:46.862
FIONA: Because if you think about it, with all the technological advances we’ve had over, you know, the last 50, 75 years, this role has been completely reshaped, right?
00:21:46.882 –> 00:21:51.182
FIONA: It’s evolved every step of its evolution has been down to tech advances.
00:21:51.462 –> 00:21:57.162
FIONA: So in some sense, this is just the next, you know, evolution, I guess you could say the next chapter in that story.
00:21:57.482 –> 00:22:17.442
FIONA: But in another sense, this is really the first time that AI has an automation really has threatened desk based workers, knowledge workers, you know, I mean, automation is like old news for frontline workers, you know, I mean, if you worked in a factory or you know, those jobs have been disappearing for decades.
00:22:17.882 –> 00:22:22.702
FIONA: And so I think that’s what makes this moment really different and really scary for folks.
00:22:23.042 –> 00:22:31.502
FIONA: But I would say, you know, there’s a great quote from the economist Richard Baldwin, AI won’t take your job, someone using AI well.
00:22:31.522 –> 00:22:32.682
FIONA: And I think that’s great.
00:22:32.702 –> 00:22:38.222
FIONA: And I think that’s absolutely true that we must lean into this and get ahead on this and that it isn’t going to replace us.
00:22:38.242 –> 00:22:40.582
FIONA: It’s really going to augment at least most of us.
00:22:41.522 –> 00:22:50.822
FIONA: And I would add to that, actually, what I like to say is AI won’t take your job, but it will fundamentally change it.
00:22:51.122 –> 00:22:56.142
FIONA: It will absolutely change the tasks that you’re doing on a daily and a weekly basis.
00:22:56.722 –> 00:23:02.522
FIONA: And so, you know, my perspective on this is like AI plus human equals superhuman.
00:23:02.982 –> 00:23:08.602
FIONA: You know, all of us have very deeply human skills that AI is not going to replace.
00:23:09.082 –> 00:23:25.002
FIONA: But we can be even better at what we do and more efficient and more effective by wrapping our arms around these tools, understanding how they can help us, understanding where they can give us the most leverage in our workflow, and really running with them, getting ahead of the curve on all this stuff.
00:23:25.022 –> 00:23:26.742
FIONA: So that’s my personal view.
00:23:26.762 –> 00:23:34.242
FIONA: I mean, I could carry on talking more about it, but for the sake of time, that’s where I stand now, you know, winter 2024.
00:23:34.262 –> 00:23:36.042
JEREMY: Yeah, that’s great.
00:23:36.042 –> 00:23:37.362
JEREMY: And I’m on I’m on board.
00:23:37.382 –> 00:23:39.662
JEREMY: I’m on the agree train with you there.
00:23:40.342 –> 00:23:44.002
JEREMY: And thanks for thanks for articulating that so well.
00:23:45.382 –> 00:23:49.162
JEREMY: What let’s talk about a little bit about learning and unlearning.
00:23:49.822 –> 00:24:03.362
JEREMY: And so this part of this idea in my mind, thinking about the future of our role, thinking about embracing AI and using AI to help us be a be better assistance.
00:24:05.782 –> 00:24:11.102
JEREMY: There’s obviously this like, oh, you know, always learning hashtag, always learning mindset.
00:24:11.122 –> 00:24:19.802
JEREMY: But then you mentioned when I asked for specific topics, you mentioned this idea of being open to constant learning plus unlearning.
00:24:20.462 –> 00:24:23.202
JEREMY: So tell us a little bit about what you mean by that.
00:24:23.202 –> 00:24:29.482
JEREMY: And you know, I don’t know if reskilling is kind of a similar along the similar vein.
00:24:29.502 –> 00:24:30.402
JEREMY: I’ve heard that term too.
00:24:30.542 –> 00:24:36.822
JEREMY: But yeah, talk to us about the ability to be open to learning and unlearning.
00:24:38.062 –> 00:24:39.542
FIONA: Yeah, that’s a great question.
00:24:39.562 –> 00:24:43.702
FIONA: And I think it is very closely tied to reskilling.
00:24:43.982 –> 00:24:50.982
FIONA: And you know, my thought on this is that really all of us need to get curious.
00:24:51.162 –> 00:24:56.102
FIONA: You know, I think it starts with mindset of that curiosity of how might this help me?
00:24:56.842 –> 00:24:58.742
FIONA: And where is this going to give me leverage?
00:24:58.762 –> 00:25:00.842
FIONA: By the way, where is it not going to help me?
00:25:00.902 –> 00:25:04.582
FIONA: Because a lot of these tools are absolutely half-baked right now.
00:25:04.922 –> 00:25:08.862
FIONA: So, you know, do take a critical eye and look at what’s good out there and what isn’t.
00:25:09.302 –> 00:25:22.982
FIONA: But then when it comes to learning and unlearning, you know, we all need to commit to learning these new tools, learning how we can get the best out of them, and getting under the skin of where is this really going to add value in my day, in my week?
00:25:23.562 –> 00:25:32.622
FIONA: And when it comes to unlearning, it’s thinking about all of the things that you’re currently doing that are going to fall away because a tool can help you with those.
00:25:32.982 –> 00:25:45.762
FIONA: And I’ll give you an example, you know, I oftentimes say to people, like, I think one of the best ways to view AI is as, you know, as a co-pilot, as a thought partner and as a tool to help fill in for some of your own deficiencies.
00:25:46.502 –> 00:25:54.902
FIONA: So it really starts with self-awareness of what are things that I hate doing, or I’m just not that good at, or maybe slower than other people are doing.
00:25:55.282 –> 00:25:56.982
FIONA: I hate creating slide decks.
00:25:57.542 –> 00:26:08.322
FIONA: It’s like, I didn’t have that background of being like a managed consultant or a result of death by power, years just building PowerPoint, you know, and so I feel like I’m not that great at it.
00:26:08.642 –> 00:26:18.182
FIONA: The first tool I went out there and tried for creating slide decks, because I thought, great, why not actually outsource this to AI?
00:26:18.422 –> 00:26:20.422
FIONA: This is something I know I’m not the best at.
00:26:20.442 –> 00:26:23.062
FIONA: And by the way, I don’t want to be a master at, you know?
00:26:23.602 –> 00:26:39.082
FIONA: And so I think the idea is learning how to let go, unlearning of I must do this by hand, the unlearning that, oh, using a tool like this is cheating and actually relearning that this is actually really valuable.
00:26:39.242 –> 00:26:42.142
FIONA: And okay, it’s not 100% out the gates.
00:26:42.442 –> 00:26:50.662
FIONA: You know, you put in one prompt and you get it to spit out something that’s not going to be perfect on the first go, you’re going to have to reshape that you’re going to polish it.
00:26:50.682 –> 00:26:52.002
FIONA: It’s an iterative process.
00:26:52.342 –> 00:26:56.402
FIONA: You’re going to have to take it over the finish line yourself using your own brain power.
00:26:57.422 –> 00:27:04.302
FIONA: But I think that’s what I mean by learning and unlearning is like really leaning into what are the things I need to learn how to do the tools I need to learn.
00:27:05.062 –> 00:27:12.442
FIONA: And then also what are the things I need to let fall away and recognize are not going to be a big part of my role moving forward.
00:27:12.462 –> 00:27:15.222
FIONA: And that’s going to be a lot of repeatable admin.
00:27:15.822 –> 00:27:23.302
FIONA: You know, I think in the next year or two, stuff like calendaring and emails, you know, will probably take half the time they take now.
00:27:23.642 –> 00:27:36.202
FIONA: And if that’s the majority of your role, then, you know, you need to be thinking now about how do I fill that time if literally 50% of my week vanishes and 50% of my workload in a week vanishes?
00:27:36.622 –> 00:27:37.762
FIONA: What do I fill that with?
00:27:37.782 –> 00:27:41.682
FIONA: You know, and I think we all need to be thinking proactively about how we rewrite our role.
00:27:43.202 –> 00:27:43.862
JEREMY: Yeah, that’s great.
00:27:43.882 –> 00:27:47.082
JEREMY: And you cut out for just a second when you were talking about the example.
00:27:47.102 –> 00:27:48.722
JEREMY: I think you were talking about slide decks.
00:27:48.982 –> 00:27:55.042
JEREMY: And is that is that something that you you have used AI?
00:27:55.082 –> 00:27:55.802
JEREMY: Is that what you’re saying?
00:27:55.822 –> 00:27:58.222
JEREMY: You have used AI to do to help with your slide decks?
00:27:59.082 –> 00:28:00.062
FIONA: Yeah, I have.
00:28:00.102 –> 00:28:02.182
FIONA: I’ve used a few different tools so far.
00:28:02.202 –> 00:28:08.882
FIONA: I’ve used so there is Copilot, which is Microsoft 365 products.
00:28:08.902 –> 00:28:10.942
FIONA: So it’s baked into PowerPoint.
00:28:10.962 –> 00:28:13.242
FIONA: I’ve just been trialing that over the last couple of weeks.
00:28:14.502 –> 00:28:17.022
FIONA: I’ll tell you straight up, I’m not that impressed with it so far.
00:28:17.042 –> 00:28:19.202
FIONA: But, you know, this is winter 2024.
00:28:19.222 –> 00:28:20.682
FIONA: I’m sure like give it six months.
00:28:20.702 –> 00:28:22.102
FIONA: It’ll probably be a lot further along.
00:28:23.162 –> 00:28:26.902
FIONA: I’ve also used Beautiful.AI, which is very, very good.
00:28:26.922 –> 00:28:29.922
FIONA: And then I’ve also used Gamma.
00:28:30.722 –> 00:28:36.562
FIONA: And I’ve used Canva, which is, of course, a broader design tool with a slide deck functionality built into it.
00:28:36.582 –> 00:28:44.482
FIONA: And all of those are really excellent and have gotten me a lot further than I could get when it comes to the look and feel, the design of slides.
00:28:45.822 –> 00:28:46.342
JEREMY: That’s great.
00:28:46.362 –> 00:28:48.442
JEREMY: Definitely have to check those out.
00:28:48.822 –> 00:28:54.622
JEREMY: And yeah, I really, really appreciate you sharing your journey and sharing some tips, some really practical tips as well.
00:28:55.202 –> 00:28:59.602
JEREMY: When it comes to AI and the future of our role.
00:29:00.222 –> 00:29:04.482
JEREMY: What’s maybe the best way for people to reach out?
00:29:04.862 –> 00:29:11.082
JEREMY: And what are you excited about as far as your business carve?
00:29:11.822 –> 00:29:13.822
JEREMY: What are you excited about for the future?
00:29:15.322 –> 00:29:18.562
FIONA: Yeah, the best way to reach me is always through LinkedIn.
00:29:18.582 –> 00:29:20.022
FIONA: I’m on there pretty much every day.
00:29:20.422 –> 00:29:21.902
FIONA: So look up Fiona Young.
00:29:21.922 –> 00:29:23.722
FIONA: I’m usually the first search result.
00:29:25.442 –> 00:29:31.082
FIONA: And I am so excited to see where this wild journey will take me.
00:29:31.102 –> 00:29:34.102
FIONA: I mean, the world of AI, things are moving so fast.
00:29:34.582 –> 00:29:37.202
FIONA: I’m sure you know, Jeremy, from your role in your company.
00:29:38.222 –> 00:29:42.102
FIONA: It’s really a really, really, really interesting time to be working in this space.
00:29:42.162 –> 00:29:45.882
FIONA: And there’s endless amounts to learn and to help others learn as well.
00:29:45.902 –> 00:29:48.102
FIONA: And that’s really what drives me forward and excites me.
00:29:48.122 –> 00:29:55.202
FIONA: It gets me out of bed every day is just the opportunity to help EAs out there be a better version of themselves.
00:29:55.222 –> 00:29:57.662
FIONA: And I think that’s what this age of AI presents us.
00:29:58.742 –> 00:29:59.162
JEREMY: Awesome.
00:29:59.502 –> 00:30:11.522
JEREMY: Well, I will put your LinkedIn URL as well as your website and everything else in the show notes at leaderassistant.com/263leaderassistant.com/ 263.
00:30:11.702 –> 00:30:13.942
JEREMY: And Fiona, thank you so much for being on the show.
00:30:14.402 –> 00:30:22.362
JEREMY: Thank you so much for your passion for helping assistants and helping them learn and grow and embrace AI.
00:30:23.722 –> 00:30:28.682
JEREMY: And yeah, hopefully we’ll get to get some good food in London together someday.
00:30:29.662 –> 00:30:30.302
FIONA: Absolutely.
00:30:30.322 –> 00:30:34.582
FIONA: And thank you so much for creating this platform as well and allowing people like me to share.
00:30:34.802 –> 00:30:35.502
FIONA: Thank you, Jeremy.
00:30:45.966 –> 00:30:48.486
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00:30:55.082 –> 00:30:56.862
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