AI is a sword for cutting through blockers, not a shield to hide behind. Let me explain.
Welcome to Lead Prompt // executing leadership from the root. I’m your host, John Collins.
In every technological revolution, there is a period of tool/society misalignment. We have the hardware, but we haven’t yet developed the spirit to use it correctly. Right now, we are in the “Iron Age of AI”. We’ve discovered the metal, we’ve forged the weapons, but half the army is trying to use their shields to hide behind rather than their swords clear the path ahead.
AI is a sword, not a shield.
A sword is a weapon. It is designed for momentum. It requires an active hand, a steady eye, and the courage to move forward. A sword is for attacking the problem.
A shield is a guard. It’s heavy. It’s reactive. It is designed to minimize impact and keep the status quo safe from external forces. A shield is for defending the way things have always been done.
In your organization, which one is it? In my team, I see this divide every day. I see engineers who treat AI like a protective barrier, and others who treat it like a laser-honed edge.
The Psychology of the Shield
Let’s talk about the defenders. These are the reluctant users. They aren't Luddites as they know the world is changing, but they are sceptical. They feel the pressure from senior management to "incorporate AI," so they treat it as a check-box exercise.
They use AI for "side-topics." They’ll use it to summarize a meeting they didn’t want to attend anyway, or to polish the tone of an email. They use it to create a facade of productivity that keeps managers off their backs. "Yes, we are using AI," they claim, while they keep their core work, their "real" engineering, safely tucked away in a dark corner where AI isn't allowed to touch it.
For them, AI is a defensive moat. They hope that if they use it just enough to satisfy the requirements, they can protect their traditional workflows from being disrupted. They are using the shield to defend their ego and their old habits. But here’s the truth: A shield doesn't win wars; it only delays the inevitable.
The Mechanics of the Sword
Then, you have the attackers. These are the engineers who realize that the "main topic" is exactly where AI belongs. They don’t use AI to hide from the work; they use it to sprint into the heart of it.
For these guys, AI is an accelerator. When they hit a wall of legacy code that would normally take three days to untangle, they don’t settle in for a long siege. They draw the sword. They use AI to map the logic, refactor the mess, and cut through the technical debt in three hours.
They use AI to:
- Vanquish Boilerplate: They don't waste cognitive energy on the "boring" parts of the build.
- Stress-Test Logic: They use AI to "attack" their own code, finding edge cases before the QA team ever sees them.
- Rapid Prototyping: They move from "What if?" to "Here it is" at a speed that feels like a tactical strike.
AI is as sharp as their wit, and they aren't afraid of the edge. They understand that by automating the routine, they aren't losing their jobs; they are gaining the ability to attack more complex, more interesting, and more valuable problems.
The Root Problem: Why the Shield Exists
As leaders, we have to ask why our teams are hiding. Often, the "Shield" behaviour is a rational response to a culture of fear. If an engineer thinks AI will replace them, they will hide behind it. If they think they will be judged for "cheating" by using AI on core tasks, they will only use it for the fluff.
If we want our teams to swing the sword, we have to change what we reward. If you reward "hours spent," people will use AI as a shield to make those hours look busy. If you reward "outcomes achieved," people will pick up the sword because it’s the only way to reach those outcomes at the speed the market now demands.
Executing Leadership from the Root
So, how do we encourage our teams to swing AI like a sword?
- Demonstrate the Sharpness: Show them your own sword. Show your team how you are using AI to cut through your own administrative blockers or strategic puzzles. I am now doing this daily, and publicly for my guys to see.
- Redefine "The Main Topic": Make it clear that AI isn't just for documentation and emails. Challenge them to use it on the hardest ticket in the sprint.
- Remove the Moat: Stop accepting "We used AI" as an answer. Ask "How did AI help you move 10x faster on the core architecture?"
Conclusion: The Call to Arms
We aren't looking for "users" of AI. We are looking for "warriors" who can take this technology and use it to carve out new possibilities.
Don't let your team hunker down. Don't let them dig a moat of "side-tasks" and "check-boxes." Remind them that in the hands of a skilled engineer, AI is the finest blade ever forged.
The question isn't whether AI is coming for the work. The question is: are you going to hide behind the shield until you're overrun, or are you going to draw the sword and lead the charge?
I’m John Collins, and this is Lead Prompt. Let’s execute from the root.
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