Ep 287 - AI and the Human Connection with guest Stacey Hanke

How do we maintain genuine human connection and authenticity in a world increasingly shaped by AI? In this episode of The Quiet And Strong Podcast, host David Hall welcomes back Hall of Fame keynote speaker and executive mentor Stacey Hanke. Together, they explore how technology, especially AI, is transforming leadership communication—and how you can remain authentic and influential in every interaction.

Listeners will learn the critical importance of consistent communication—what Stacey calls the "Monday to Monday" approach—and why showing up as your true self builds trust and credibility. Key takeaways include actionable steps for using AI as a partner while maintaining your unique personal brand, strategies for ensuring your body language and messaging align, and how to leverage technology for greater efficiency without sacrificing the power of real connection.

Tune in to discover why human connection will always matter, how leaders can grow their influence, and practical ways to become more self-aware and impactful in every conversation. Whether you're leading a team or simply looking to communicate more powerfully, this episode has insights you won't want to miss. Listen in, embrace your strengths, and be strong.

Episode Link: QuietandStrong.com/287

Stacey Hanke, a leader in influential communication strategies, began her career in voice-over work, where she learned the power of word choice and delivery. With over two decades of research, she realized that true influence isn’t about titles but about building trust and credibility through meaningful connections and communication. Stacey collaborates with Fortune 500 executives, helping them understand their impact from their audience’s perspective, eliminate distractions, and achieve greater success. As a Hall of Fame Speaker, Stacey’s engaging presentations provide practical strategies to overcome modern communication barriers, foster authentic connections, and inspire action. Her Monday to Monday® philosophy empowers professionals to be impactful in every interaction, from presentations to everyday conversations, helping them drive action and achieve success.

Get Stacey's Book: Influence Elevated: Maximizing Your Connection Monday to Monday

Stacey's Website:  StaceyHankeInc.com

Get Stacey's FREE ebook for Quiet and Strong Listeners: Influence Redefined

Transcript

Stacey Hanke [00:00:00]:
And we've just over the years have taken for granted that communication no longer— it's not a soft skill. I really look at it as it's a currency. And those that are going to figure it out by taking the time to focus on— that's part of my development. So just as if you're into health and fitness and that regimen of you're working out every day or you go for a certain long walk, mileage, steps every day, Communications really fits into that same caliber because it represents your brand. It represents your reputation. It represents what people say about you when you're not in the room. Who are they going to call on? Who are they going to think about? And it's not necessarily going to always be just your experience and what your LinkedIn profile looks like. Yes, it's a big component.

Stacey Hanke [00:00:51]:
When they meet you, though, are you consistent? with who you say you are.

David Hall [00:01:05]:
Hello, and welcome to episode 287 of the Quiet and Strong podcast, especially for introverts. I'm your host, David Hall, and the creator of quietandstrong.com. This is a weekly podcast dedicated to understanding the strengths and needs of introverts along with strategies for success. Introversion is not something to fix, but to be embraced. Normally we'll air each episode on a Monday. Be sure to subscribe on your favorite platform, leave a review or rating. That would mean a lot to me and help others find the show. Tell a friend about the podcast and help get the word out there that introversion is a beautiful thing.

David Hall [00:01:40]:
Stacy Hunke is a Hall of Fame keynote speaker, executive mentor, and leading expert on influence executive presence, and leadership communication. For more than 2 decades, she's worked with leaders at nearly 100 Fortune 500 organizations, including American Express, Coca-Cola, Boeing, and FedEx, helping them communicate with greater clarity, confidence, and credibility. Today, Stacy's work focuses on one of the biggest leadership challenges organizations face: maintaining trust and authentic human connection in a workplace increasingly shaped by AI-generated communication. Today's technology widens the credibility gap for leaders. Stacy helps leaders close that gap by aligning communication, executive presence, and personal brand in every interaction Monday to Monday. Her research-backed strategies help executives communicate So that people not only hear their message, but also trust the leader delivering it.

David Hall [00:02:45]:
All right. Well, welcome back to the Quiet and Strong podcast, Stacy. Stacy, it's good to have you back on today.

Stacey Hanke [00:02:52]:
Well, and thank you. Thanks for inviting me to come back on.

David Hall [00:02:56]:
Yeah, very excited to hear what's going on with you and the latest. You know, people can go back and listen to episode 205, which is a great one. But for those that haven't, let's just Do a little recap. Tell us about yourself and your journey and to what you're doing now.

Stacey Hanke [00:03:12]:
Yeah, it has been a journey, right? So my lane has always been helping leaders, helping executives elevate their executive presence, their connections, their influence. So a lot of it is making sure that their body language, their messaging is consistent. And we talk a lot about Monday to Monday. To give that some reference, I believe that Monday to Monday means it's not about what you do some of the time. That's going to determine your connections, your trust, and influence with others. It's what you do all the time. That topic, communication being the core to everything that we do, obviously that has evolved, which you and I have been talking about a little bit here, and that is the AI concept. And a lot of our clients are coming to us saying, well, we're using AI obviously for efficiencies, operational excellence, However, our leaders, our executives, when they do show up in person, now we're starting to guess, well, which person is which? Because they're not sounding like their AI messaging.

Stacey Hanke [00:04:10]:
They're losing some of that human connection. Or, David, they're just not taking the time and the focus that that part of how we deliver a message is still critical.

David Hall [00:04:21]:
Yeah, absolutely. And if I had to think back, what really stuck out to me from our podcast together and reading your books, Monday to Monday. And you just mentioned that. Dive into that a little bit more. Expand on that. What is that?

Stacey Hanke [00:04:38]:
Yeah. This whole idea of Monday to Monday, you know, maybe where it came from, right, is I grew up on a farm in central Wisconsin. I grew up on a dairy farm. And my mom and dad, Alan and Jackie, are 86 years old. And literally, David, 17 years ago, they decided to retire from the farm. for 6 days.

David Hall [00:04:54]:
Oh, wow.

Stacey Hanke [00:04:55]:
On the 7th day, they did not rest. On the 7th day, they were back up there. My mom and dad are like, nope, we're not ready yet. So literally, they're still on the farm. Now, the farm looks a little different, but where this whole Monday to Monday concept came from is the spring of every year, I would watch my mom and dad plant the fields. And then throughout the year, Monday to Monday, their consistency with the work, their discipline, their focus, their determination, That Monday-to-Monday behavior and action always determined our finances when we would harvest in the fall. That's very much of a farming mentality if you do it right. Well, then, David, I get into the corporate world and I realize, wait a second, this is kind of the same.

Stacey Hanke [00:05:37]:
It is the same concept because how we interact with people, which means how we show up, how we stay showed up, the message or impact we leave behind. That determines our level of success, which means our productivity. How do we run our business? No matter what business you are in, it's the people in our circle that determines, and it determines the money in, money in our pocket. And that all happens Monday to Monday. Well, when it comes to connections, it's exactly that. I believe that how you see me here, David, and how your listeners might be hearing me, that's how I am Monday to Monday. Because the minute we start showing up differently, meaning we're more relaxed, meaning we don't care and we're not thinking about our presence or the experience someone has with us, we're not thinking about how do our words land, people will start to guess who's going to show up. And if they start guessing who's going to show up virtually, in person, on a Monday, on a Friday, now you start chiseling away at your credibility, the confidence, the trust that someone has in you.

Stacey Hanke [00:06:44]:
And that's where AI is really coming into light. I did another podcast earlier this week and we were talking about, think of the layers of AI. It's even your communication is critical, what you say to AI, how you communicate those questions, how you give AI that information so that it gives you the answer you need. That's one segment of AI. And then it's the other one that we were starting to tap into. If you get messages, email messages from me, David, you see my social media posts and they are 100% AI generated. Then when you meet me here in this space and I don't talk that way, I don't use those words, I'm not that brilliant, you will start to guess which one is she.

David Hall [00:07:31]:
Yeah, absolutely. And the farming example is such a good one. You know, I'm not, I didn't grow up on a farm, but I did. When my grandfather passed away, we took over his cows and pigs. And so you can't ever let up, you know, it's, it's constant. You don't, you can't take a break from taking care of the farm or the animals or, or whatever. And, and you said your parents were still, still had a farm?

Stacey Hanke [00:07:59]:
Crazy. So my mom and dad at 86, they're still on the farmland. So my dad still has the land. He has quite a bit of land. He obviously has some help where he rents some of that land off, but some of it he's still— David, he's still hopping on a tractor in the spring and the fall. I have no idea how he's doing it. And then he loves to raise other people's cattle during the year. And it's the purpose, right? And as we're talking through this here, if you've ever— not to divert too off topic here— if you've ever learned anything about the Blue Zone areas throughout the world, and there's a lot of books on it.

Stacey Hanke [00:08:35]:
And for those of you who don't know, Blue Zones are areas around the world where people live well beyond their hundreds. And when we've— they've done research, whoever they is, have gone and done research to just immerse themselves in those communities. It's having purpose, meaning they never give up. They're always at this level of discipline. There's always this ethical of, what do I do next? I got to keep moving. I look at the same concept when it comes to how we interact with people. Because I really believe that your level of communication, the effectiveness of it, really determines the relationships you have in life, like the people that surround you, right? It determines the level of position you have. It determines truly sometimes the finances, the money in your pocket.

Stacey Hanke [00:09:29]:
It determines, do you get the job you really wanted to get? And we've just over the years have taken for granted that communication no longer— it's not a soft skill. I really look at it as it's a currency. And those that are going to figure it out by taking the time to focus on— that's part of my development. So just as if you're into health and fitness and that regimen of you're working out every day or you go for a certain long walk, mileage, steps every day, communications really fits into that same caliber because it represents your brand, it represents your reputation, it represents what people say about you when you're not in the room. Who are they going to call on? Who are they going to think about? And it's not necessarily going to always be just your experience and what your LinkedIn profile looks like. Yes, it's a big component. When they meet you though, are you consistent with who you say you are?

David Hall [00:10:29]:
Yeah, absolutely. Let's talk a little bit more about communication. And I want to plug your last couple of books because I read them and enjoyed them. Tell us about the message of your books. And it's along these lines.

Stacey Hanke [00:10:43]:
Yeah, thank you. Thank you for taking the time to read those and not only using them for a paperweight. Influence Redefined was the first book. And the title is exactly what it is. I spent— oh, man, I've been doing this for 24 years. So that book came out in 2017, Influence Redefined. So it was thousands, many years of research in the business with clients, mentoring executives, where I really redefine influence. And I define it as your body language and your messaging.

Stacey Hanke [00:11:11]:
They have to be consistent Monday to Monday. I also define it as influence. True influence is you have this ability, David, to move someone to take action long after the conversation has occurred. You and I both know as entrepreneurs, influence doesn't happen overnight. It is a series of interactions that are consistent over time. That's why successful companies are successful because of this brand loyalty, this consistency. Influence Redefined is a very practical, immediate how-to book. It's a playbook of how do you create consistent influence? How do you build trust through your body language, your messaging? Influence Elevated came out a little over a year and a half ago, and it's exactly that.

Stacey Hanke [00:12:02]:
I, I I decided to write the follow-up book. It's a continuation of Influence Redefined. With the pandemic that happened, communication changed. Hybrid, AI, it was before that, so there's not that component in it. But it really is another practical book that gives you how-tos of how do you elevate, how do you elevate how you come across. The cool thing that's been really popular with that book is I created an Impact IQ assessment. It's an assessment, David, that takes you probably 4 minutes to take, and it helps identify your influence type. Throughout the years, I realized that the executives I coached, it was tough to coach them if they didn't understand what their influence type was, how they influence, and if they didn't have a clear understanding of when it comes to influence, what do they want.

Stacey Hanke [00:12:56]:
Those are 2 powerful tools that I'll use before I one-on-one mentor anyone. Because once you've got clarity of what do you want people to say about you when you're not there, once you've got that clarity, I'll measure where you currently are with your level of influence to where you want to go. And then I help you fill in the gap. I'm filling in that unknown piece where we don't know what we don't know. We don't always know how people perceive us. We're not always 100%, David, understanding of how do I sound? How do I come across? That's usually a big shock for people because, especially in an executive role, for years they're told about how great they are when it comes to feedback. Good job. Nice work.

Stacey Hanke [00:13:44]:
Well, what do you do with that, though? So these techniques of the assessment, the identify what you want when it comes to influence, That's the first step of experiencing yourself through the eyes and ears of your listeners.

David Hall [00:13:58]:
Yeah.

David Hall [00:13:59]:
So let's talk about that a little bit more. How do we elevate our influence?

Stacey Hanke [00:14:03]:
Oh my goodness. How much time do you have?

David Hall [00:14:06]:
Yes. It's an important topic.

Stacey Hanke [00:14:08]:
It is. It's an important topic. So in the book, I want to do this as simple as possible for our reader or your followers. There is an influence elevated model. I mean, you know, it gets serious anytime someone starts throwing out a model at you. But in the book, it's pretty self-explanatory. And there's 3 elements in the model. So if you Imagine a triangle.

Stacey Hanke [00:14:26]:
The bottom right, it says momentum. First, you've got to create momentum, and you do that through constructive feedback and deliberate practice. Now move to the bottom left of that triangle, and it is executive presence. Now there are 8 delivery skills my team and I teach, but the 2 that I really focus on is first self-awareness. We don't know what we don't know. And we cannot change anything in our life, David, if we're not first self-aware. That's, that's the biggest roadblock for anyone that can't elevate, or they're not sure, I should say. Everyone can elevate, but they're not sure how to elevate.

Stacey Hanke [00:15:03]:
Also under executive presence is the number one— we'll call it a skill, I guess you call it a skill— that jeopardizes someone's ability to elevate their influence, and it's brevity.

David Hall [00:15:16]:
We over—

Stacey Hanke [00:15:17]:
Explain. We say too much, and we can come back to that. The 3rd element is the very top of that influence elevated triangle, and that is connection. The more connection we have, the more influence we will have. It is that simple and yet that complicated. And the 2 elements under connection is consistency and trust. That, that data, that's the big picture. And then in the book, I go real deep into each of those categories, and I explain to you how do you do it.

Stacey Hanke [00:15:52]:
And I'll tell you, the how starts in the bottom right-hand corner of that triangle, of that model, which is momentum. The how is the constant feedback and the constant practice. I want everyone that follows me, I want you to think like a professional athlete, an actor, actress, musician, anything that takes muscle memory. I, I've shared— maybe I shared this with you. This was a number of years ago. I was listening to a podcast, and I wish, I wish I would remember what it was. And the interviewer was interviewing a big-time NBA player that had played and competed against Kobe Bryant when he was with us. And it was the morning of a game.

Stacey Hanke [00:16:32]:
They were going to compete against each other, play against each other, and it's 6:00 AM. The individual that they were interviewing walks into the gym and Kobe Bryant is there. He's practicing. Kobe Bryant had been in that gym for 2 hours.

David Hall [00:16:41]:
Wow.

Stacey Hanke [00:16:44]:
This individual, he starts practicing. 2 hours later, it's now 8 AM. He leaves the gym, but Kobe Bryant is still practicing since 4 AM. Later that day, when they reconvened, this individual asked Kobe Bryant, dude, you know, I got in the room or got in that court and you were there at 4 AM. I left at 8. You were still practicing. And Kobe Bryant's response was, when I saw you come into that gym, I thought to myself, no one is ever going to out-practice me. And in this material that I teach, David, because it is muscle memory, people always ask me, well, but I'm an introvert, or wait, I'm an extrovert, or, you know, I don't learn that way.

Stacey Hanke [00:17:20]:
I say to them, out of everyone that I've had the blessing to coach and mentor or speak to, it's never been someone that's smarter, someone of a certain generation. It is the individual who is willing to roll up their sleeves and realize that what doesn't challenge them will never change them. They understand that nothing good happens fast. And they also understand that this idea of elevating your influence, it's not a destination. It's never done, David. It's this journey where you just continue to elevate through the practice, the feedback along the way.

David Hall [00:17:57]:
Yeah. So now that you've written these books and, you know, the world's always changing. Yeah. I wrote a book on time management and I might do a second edition just to include AI, you know, because AI wasn't a thing when I wrote the book.

David Hall [00:18:14]:
Yes.

David Hall [00:18:14]:
So if you were to write another book or do a second edition, what would you include about AI now?

Stacey Hanke [00:18:22]:
I don't know yet. And David, I'm going to sit and just observe for a while.

David Hall [00:18:29]:
Yeah.

Stacey Hanke [00:18:29]:
You know, and that's, that's really what I did during the whole COVID pandemic era. People kept asking me, are you gonna write a book?

David Hall [00:18:35]:
Are you gonna write a book?

Stacey Hanke [00:18:36]:
I'm like, not yet. And I'm glad I waited because initially when COVID hit, I immediately thought, oh, I got to write about COVID I'm so glad I didn't. Influence Elevated doesn't have those words in it because I'm like, this too will pass. Now, I'm not saying AI will pass, but with something like that pandemic, I'm like, God, you know, this will pass, but I need to wait to get on the other side. In that case, I wanted to get on the other side of that. And that's why I literally waited until 20— what, we're 26 right now? I started writing it in late '24. It was a fast turnaround. But I just— I knew I had to see things out.

Stacey Hanke [00:19:13]:
With AI, who knows, right? I mean, the fact that it changes so, so fast. I also write my books based off of what I hear my clients say. I really use them as my research. I want to just see what they are struggling with. And then when I— I'll have it in my instinct. I'll know when it's time to write the next one. And at that point, there might be also something new in addition to AI, David, that we need to really dive into. The piece that I feel very fortunate of the subject that I've chosen to be my unique ability for this long— communication is the core to everything that we do.

Stacey Hanke [00:19:53]:
And unless I'm wrong, I don't know how anything would ever replace human connection. I heard a podcast this morning, and they were talking about the trends with Alpha generation, the new trends. Maybe you're familiar with this, of things like— there's a Pomona college that I speak to every year, and I was talking to the professor last month about this, and there's a name for this type of club. I forgot the name. He said, have you heard about this? And I'm like, no. He goes, well, keep in mind, I work with 18 to 22-year-olds. For an hour, they meet in this club and no technical gadgets are allowed. And it's truly an hour to do crafting, like things that I did back in the day.

Stacey Hanke [00:20:40]:
My nieces are alphas and they love the camera. The big deal was, I don't want to take pictures on my phone anymore. I want a camera. They're curious about, I want to, I want to talk on a phone with a cord. I was in the LA airport, oh, just a week ago, and I know we've got a lot of record stores here in Chicago. I hadn't seen yet in an airport that was a bookstore, David, and floor to ceiling it was all, it was all record albums. Today the podcast was also talking about the written letter is back, and, and that's what I mean by I want to just kind of wait and see, but see what, what happens, what evolves. But communication to me, that human connection, I guess that's where I was going with all these examples and the Alpha Generation.

Stacey Hanke [00:21:27]:
There's just— AI will never replace human connection. I think it's amazing how it's going to, how already it's been so efficient for even us internally. It'll always be there to write your research, your messaging, but you still need to be able to connect with people. And that's going to be by showing up in a way that is your best self, your personal brand that is consistent Monday to Monday, and that is able to adapt and pivot to who you're trying to connect with.

David Hall [00:21:58]:
Yeah, absolutely. And let's get into that more. But what excites you about AI? What, what benefits do you see?

Stacey Hanke [00:22:08]:
Yeah, the efficiencies, David. I was just telling my team the other day, How did I ever get this far without it? The amount of time it has saved my team is insane. The, the, the fact that you can just find almost anything with it is— just blows my mind. I think from an efficiency, a time standpoint, it's amazing. I am presenting next week. I'm delivering a keynote for a big events company, and they pride themselves They've been 30 years in business. They put together large events. They pride themselves in customer service.

Stacey Hanke [00:22:45]:
And the CEO, the founder, made a really powerful comment to me. He said, you know, we're really using AI for our efficiencies so that we can spend more time with our clients. And it was just a different spin on it, David, that I thought, that's true. Because now you don't have an excuse. I don't have time to meet with you. I don't have time to meet with you. If you've got these AI agents that are set up that are going to provide you with the greatest efficiency, operational excellence.

David Hall [00:23:14]:
Yeah. I think that ties so powerfully into what you're saying because there's, there's plenty of things that we do that AI can do that would, if AI does these things, it frees us up to have those human connections.

David Hall [00:23:30]:
Yeah.

David Hall [00:23:30]:
It takes away a lot of the work that That we don't necessarily need to do. And that can really free us up for better and more human communication and connection.

Stacey Hanke [00:23:41]:
Right. Which is why it's so important to never stop. Don't put your— take your foot off the gas pedal for focusing on how you show up, how people experience you.

David Hall [00:23:54]:
Yeah.

David Hall [00:23:56]:
So let's talk about, you know, I know you talk about this, the leader that's using AI. And then when they show up, it seems like it's not the same person that wrote the message. Yes.

Stacey Hanke [00:24:09]:
My goodness, David. I've had numerous clients say to me, they're not that brilliant. They would never say that.

David Hall [00:24:13]:
Right?

Stacey Hanke [00:24:14]:
It's just so awkward.

David Hall [00:24:15]:
Right?

Stacey Hanke [00:24:16]:
Yeah. And I'd be the first to admit, I think there are really— there's 3 steps. The first step is one we've already talked about as you're using AI is just identify what you want your personal brand to be. What do you want people to— what do you want to be known for? How do you want people to experience you? Right? That would be step number 1. Step number 2, most of us know this. When you ask AI a question, never take the first response. AI is only as good as you teach it by constantly asking it questions and going deeper. Now, that to me is another level of communication.

Stacey Hanke [00:24:53]:
You've got to be a good questioner. And I've known this for years. Before AI, I would get a lot of requests from clients saying, can you help us? Can you help our sales leaders ask the right questions to really discover what our clients' true problems are? Because they're not really telling us. So that's step 3. Step 4 is then you get the message. And even at the very last, you know, I'm going back and forth with AI last night. And the very last thing that I feel like I will ask after I feel like AI's given me everything I think I need, I'll ask, Are you telling me the truth? Where can you prove this information? I will also ask AI at the very first time I ask it whatever I'm asking it. I will also then lead with interview me, ask me questions to get the best right answer possible.

Stacey Hanke [00:25:40]:
Right? It's all just like how you're answering questions. So the final 3rd one is when it gives you that information, now you've got to take a look at how you want to come across. What is the objective, the goal you're trying to achieve, how you're trying to influence through this messaging, and edit it. You're the final editor. What would you typically say? How would you say it? So even though AI is efficient, I think we still need to get these 3 steps down to make it as efficient as you want it to be for, again, the influence you want, the perception, the brand you want to keep.

David Hall [00:26:17]:
Yeah. The way you just described it was very inspiring because, you know, I hear people say, oh, it's taking away my creativity. But the way you can use prompts and things, you are being, and you just described a very creative way of using AI, you know, to, it's a partner with you. It's not you. And 2, at the end of it all, you do have to edit. You know, and I do, as you know, I do a lot of work with, you know, busting myths about introversion. And I think that there's still a lot of misunderstandings out there. And AI has some of those because that's what it's being fed.

David Hall [00:26:59]:
Yeah. And so when I'm working on my podcast or other writings, I do have to check it and I do have to put it in my own words and I'm definitely You know, anytime that it presents introversion as a weakness, you know, that's, that's not my view at all. So, right, you do have to edit it and ask it more questions. And I love how you described that.

Stacey Hanke [00:27:22]:
Yeah, just trying to break it down. I like your comment that AI really is your partner. There was some back and forth I was doing with AI last night, and when it finally came to the final answer, I went back and it was counterintuitive what it initially had said. So I said to AI, well, when you first said, you said this, but now you're telling me this, which answer is right? And it came back and it said, oh, you are right. I am so sorry for that. I think we— I see too many people taking the first response. You've got to keep talking to it because the more you talk to it, the more it understands you for it to really be that partner. I don't think it takes away creativity at all.

Stacey Hanke [00:28:02]:
It has challenged me. To ask better questions, which to me again, it's a it's a work in progress. But for me, I you need to be creative on what you ask, how you ask it, and then you get a response. Now you got to be creative again. I got to still keep my objective, my goal in mind. But what do I ask now based on what it gave me? You're still the brilliance behind this. At least right now, we are still the brilliance behind it because it's what we're feeding it.

David Hall [00:28:34]:
Yeah, I love that. We are the brilliance behind it. It's, it's a tool and it's a very extremely helpful tool. And I still, I'm still in awe how quickly and how thorough responses come back in a split second. I, I, I'm still in awe by that, but, but yes, but yet we are the brilliance behind it for sure.

Stacey Hanke [00:28:57]:
At least right now.

David Hall [00:29:01]:
Yeah, I'm too much of a science fiction fan. I've watched too many AI go wrong movies. So have you? Back to how do we communicate as a leader authentically while using AI as a tool?

Stacey Hanke [00:29:17]:
It ties to those 3 steps that I've talked about. It's putting in your own personality. It's— I'm always, when I'm Writing it, I think we fall into the trap of we think our listener can hear what we're thinking in our head. When I write an email, I'm always thinking about tapping into my listener's why. Why should they care about what I'm sending them? Why does it matter? Why is this happening now? Why should they take the action I want them to take?

David Hall [00:29:47]:
It's—

Stacey Hanke [00:29:47]:
I think too many times we fall into the what and the how. which means what I want you to do, how I think you should do it, what I feel is important. The what and how is critical, but I think why is right on top. Always thinking about your listener's why when you're putting together those messages. Because now, where does the authenticity come across? When they're reading the message or when you're in a conversation, they feel that, wow, you get me. You understand where I'm at. And if you understand where I'm at, I'm going to more likely trust the recommendation you're giving me because you get my world. There's more trust there.

David Hall [00:30:28]:
Yeah, that's, that's, that's so powerful because, I mean, that's what, that's what people want. They want to feel understood and that you are, you know, understanding them and that you are, you know, doing things that are in their best interest.

Stacey Hanke [00:30:44]:
Right? 100%.

David Hall [00:30:46]:
So how else are you using AI, or your company's using AI?

Stacey Hanke [00:30:52]:
I mean, I— it's open. We have our own agent. We created our own agent, and it's open every day. So it's obviously emails, a little bit of research. On the social media side, our marketing team uses it 100%. It has shaved hours off of their time to create posts, To set to position the post. Oh my goodness! We do a lot of video editing, but I'm not doing that. I know they're doing a little bit through AI, but not a lot.

Stacey Hanke [00:31:23]:
I think it's more just from a messaging standpoint, a writing standpoint, a creativity. I need a new idea. I need a way to just position this differently because I've always been talking about it like this. I also use it before I get a lot of research around sales. Before I hop on a sales call, I'm digging as far deep as I can about this person, taking information off of LinkedIn, inserting it in AI to just learn about them. Sometimes I will also get more information on how do I talk to this person, what's important to them. There are AI tools out there that if I would insert your name, David, it would tell me if you've taken any assessments, what's your results of your assessments, which will help me determine, do you like all facts? Do you want me to just more socialize when we first get on a call? Which is, which is kind of scary that you can dig that deep into someone. I, I'll use it a lot for our research on a client, meaning a company.

Stacey Hanke [00:32:28]:
It, it has helped us better prepare for conversations. And when you come on a call and you're prepared, That helps move the trust factor along a lot quicker, whether it's a client we've worked with for a long time or it's a client we're trying to bring on board.

David Hall [00:32:44]:
Yeah. Yeah. And, uh, for the introverts listening out there, preparation is a huge key to our success. And I have noticed it's, it's changing so rapidly because sometimes I want to know, I want to pull together things that I've said. You know, I want to pull together for different posts or for podcasts, and I want to just kind of put it all together. And not too long ago, it didn't know me that well. Okay, now it does. Now it can pull all the information.

David Hall [00:33:17]:
It's, it's changed over just the last couple of years. It's changed where a lot more information is available. And it is, it is very helpful. You know, preparing for something like this, or, you know, either where you're the host or the guest, you, preparation is so helpful, or for a sales call or for, for lots of things. But the information is definitely, it's improved where it's more readily accessible about different people and that type of thing.

Stacey Hanke [00:33:49]:
Yeah. Yeah, it is. It's pretty crazy how fast.

David Hall [00:33:52]:
Yeah. So for good or for bad.

Stacey Hanke [00:33:54]:
Thank you. For good or for bad. Right, right.

David Hall [00:33:58]:
But it's good. Stacy, it's so good to have you back on again. This has been a wonderful conversation. Is there anything else you want to add today?

Stacey Hanke [00:34:06]:
I think we just need to go back, go back to the basics. And I know when I was— my coaches I've had throughout my career, when business gets tough or I start to second guess it or it's overwhelming or uncertainty, wherever your followers are right now, my coach would always say, just go back to the basics. Go back to what you know to be true. And the one thing I know to be true, what's gotten me this far in my career, is my ability to connect with people, my ability to, to just listen, to adapt my message on the fly, and to also know that no matter what's going on in the world, the one thing you and I always have control over, it's our development. Go back to the basics and work on you first. So you can better be there for those that you need to influence and those that you need to really build out in your circle.

David Hall [00:34:56]:
Yeah, it's all about the human connection. There's some great tools, but as you've said multiple times, they don't replace the need and power of human connection.

Stacey Hanke [00:35:06]:
Exactly. Exactly. Thank you for inviting me back. And if anyone's interested, you know, we talked about AI and social media. We are all over LinkedIn and Instagram, not there to promote, but truly to be as a resource. And if you just go on my website, you can get connected anywhere, which is my name, Stacy with an E-Y, H-A-N-K-E, I-N-C dot com.

David Hall [00:35:31]:
Very good. I will put that in the show notes. Thanks again, Stacy.

Stacey Hanke [00:35:34]:
Thank you. Take care.

David Hall [00:35:36]:
Thank you so much for joining me. I appreciate you. I hope you take the time to explore other episodes and learn from other amazing guests. Remember, if you're interested in getting to know yourself better, there is now a free Typefinder personality assessment on the Quiet and Strong website. This free assessment will give you a brief report, including the 4-letter Myers-Briggs code. I'll add a link in the show notes. And I'd love to connect with you. Reach out at david@quietandstrong.com or check out the quietandstrong.com website.

David Hall [00:36:07]:
which includes blog posts and links to social media for Quiet and Strong and much more. Send me topics or guests you would like to see on the show. So many great things about being an introvert, and so we need those to be understood. Get to know your introverted strengths and needs and be strong.