In the TV series Severance, employees undergo a strange surgical procedure that splits their identity in two. One version of themselves, the “innie,” exists only at work. The other, the “outie,” lives a life completely unaware of their job or colleagues. Neither version remembers what the other does. It’s fiction, of course, but also a striking metaphor for the times we’re entering.
Because in this age of generative AI, leaders are creating versions of themselves that operate without them. Tools trained on their past work begin to speak in their voice, write their strategy decks, answer their emails, and craft their public messaging.
At first, it feels efficient. Productive. Smart.
But what if the AI version of you starts sounding better than you? And what if it also starts sounding less like you?
That is the paradox we must confront.
The Efficiency Illusion
I use AI. Everyday. It helps me scan large research documents quickly. It rewrites clunky sections of strategy slides. It even generates outlines that spark new ways of thinking. I am not anti-AI. Far from it.
But I remember drafting an email with AI assistance that did not sit right with me. On the surface, it was clean and well-structured. It had the right points in the right order. It even included a few recommended actions and a clear close. But it did not feel like me.
By nature, I am an ideator. I explore as I write. My emails often carry the pulse of possibility. They are sometimes nonlinear, sometimes layered, but always personal. That AI-generated version felt too smooth. Too structured. Almost clinical. I deleted it. Then rewrote it from scratch.
And when I hit send, I actually sighed with relief. I had drifted too far from who I am as a communicator. But here is the thing. The AI-generated version had surfaced some genuinely helpful framing. It introduced language I had not used before. It pulled in relevant research I might have missed. So I took the best parts, rewrote them in my own voice, and shaped the message into something better. The recipient later told me the email struck the perfect tone.
That experience taught me something important. AI can help you organize your thoughts. It can remind you of facts, frameworks and even cadence. But the voice, the energy behind the words, has to be yours.
The Synthetic Self
In my Forbes article on performative leadership, I explored how many leaders struggle with authenticity. They mirror what they believe leadership is supposed to look like instead of expressing who they truly are. They perform leadership. They don’t live it.
Now AI adds another layer. You can perform leadership without even showing up. You can build a synthetic self. And many already are. They’re training models on everything they’ve written or said. Bots that answer for them, present for them, write for them.
Gallup data shows only four in ten employees strongly agree their leader helps them feel connected to the purpose of their organization. That disconnection isn’t about grammar or phrasing. It’s about presence.
And as AI-generated content floods the workplace, a new kind of disconnect is emerging—leaders who speak eloquently but no longer sound like themselves.
Three Strategies To Stay Whole
The solution is not to reject AI. The future belongs to those who use these tools wisely. But that wisdom starts with boundaries. AI should not become your digital twin. It should serve as a well-trained assistant.
In a recent HBS study with consultants at Boston Consulting Group, AI boosted performance dramatically when used on tasks it was well-suited for, which was improving quality by over 40% and speeding up work by 25%. But the moment the task stepped outside that comfort zone (what researchers call the “jagged technological frontier”), accuracy dropped sharply, proving that leaders must know when to lean on AI and when to lead with their own judgment.
Here are three ways to lead with AI without losing yourself in the process.
1. Keep Authorship Human
Train your AI thoughtfully. Let it organize your ideas and summarize your work. Let it prepare your drafts.
But when it’s time to communicate something meaningful, put your fingerprints on it. Your tone carries memory, intention and relationship. Your people know the difference between a message that is polished and one that is personal.
2. Use AI To Explore, Not Decide
AI is brilliant at discovery. It can scan markets, surface patterns, and generate ideas. But it can’t hold paradox. It doesn’t feel tension in the room. It doesn’t know what it felt like the last time a change failed.
Good leadership requires judgment. And judgment is shaped by experience, not just data. Use AI to go wide. But when it’s time to go deep, trust your own voice.
3. Help Younger Leaders Reflect Before They Replicate
Emerging leaders are growing up with AI at their fingertips. According to new Gallup research from the Walton Family Foundation and GSV Ventures, nearly half of Gen Z (47%) use generative AI weekly. But 41% say they feel anxious about the technology, pointing to a growing gap between exposure and guidance.
This matters. If young professionals begin replicating leadership behavior before forming their own voice, we risk building a generation of technically fluent but emotionally detached leaders.
That’s where intentional mentorship and self-discovery come in. Help them reflect. Help them ask not just “What can I automate?” but “What do I believe in?” “What kind of leader do I want to become?” and “What are my natural strengths?”
When people know who they are and how they think, they can use AI wisely. Without that self-awareness, AI becomes a shortcut to sameness.
The Threat Of Sameness
There’s another risk. AI, for all its personalization, can create sameness. It favors what sounds plausible and polished, what matches what it’s already seen.
That means your voice, your rhythm, your particular way of saying something—these are at risk of being flattened. Over time, everyone starts to sound like everyone else. And sameness is the enemy of meaningful leadership.
Petrarch once wrote, “Sameness is the mother of disgust. Variety is the cure.” He was speaking of poetry and life. The lesson applies here too.
What will stand out in an AI-saturated world is not scale, but specificity. Not speed, but sincerity. Not replication, but real reflection.
Your uniqueness is not a branding feature. It is a leadership advantage.
Stay Whole
AI lives in simulation. Leaders live in the real world. You cannot build trust from a chatbot. You cannot resolve conflict with a prompt. You cannot earn loyalty from a well-trained model. Leadership happens in human environments. Messy, complex and deeply emotional. That is where presence matters most. That is where people feel seen.
AI will continue to evolve. But it still hallucinates. It still lacks context. Even as artificial general intelligence gets closer, it may never replicate the kind of judgment that grows from contradiction, failure and lived responsibility.
The temptation to fragment is real. You can create a version of yourself that works while you sleep. But leadership is not just what gets done. It is who you are while doing it. We don’t need perfectly coded innies and polished outies. We need leaders who are whole. Leaders who bring clarity and curiosity, insight and empathy, presence and conviction.
So yes, train the assistant. Let it help you. Let it amplify what you want to say. But make sure the voice your team hears is still yours. Because in the end, the most irreplaceable part of leadership is not AI or your knowledge. It is your humanity.