AI: Hype or Help? Inside the Gen Z Mind

Good day and welcome to the show AI hype or help. Today we're talking to Dr. Anati Jane. Dr. Jane is a friend of mine and a business owner. She consults to companies about how to work with different generations. Her PhD is in behavioral science and she's an expert in the field. Let's get into it. So, welcome Anati. Welcome to our show. We're talking about AI and is AI helpful or is it harming us or is it just hype and arty, thanks for joining us. You have a great background uh dealing with Gen Z's and we'd like to know more about that in particular, how AI is influencing your work. So, first question for you is what drew you to working with uh the Gen Z generation?

Was there some defining moment that you had?

Thank you so much, Pete Firstly, for having me. I am very grateful to be here and yes, one of my key audiences is Gen Z's though I'm now graduating to um alphas too and millennials and uh Gen X's and and boomers as I study generational behaviors. But uh my journey started with uh understanding Gen Z. Why? When I noticed a widening understanding gap between how fast young people were evolving and how slowly adults were adapting and that was typically my own story.

My son was seven years old and as he was growing up and becoming a teenager I realized that the gap between him and I was was uh broadening and I wanted to narrow that gap and that's really why I started studying genzers in particular and as you know uh one thing leads to the other and uh from Gen Z's I started studying other generations and then my portfolio widened but he was my starting point and I really think that sometimes I hear parents saying I feel like I'm losing connection with my child or you know a teen saying my parents think that I live in the online world. So when somebody needs to translate all of this um it gets difficult for anybody to do it.

And that's really what pulled me into this work helping both generations understand each other with empathy and not frustration. And my tagline is bridging generations if you didn't know it and you'll probably see it if somebody Googles me they'll see it. And my um superpower lies in bringing a parent and a child together because I think that's a strong foundation and that needs to be done.

Great. So your son, would you call your son part of the Gen Z and and just for the audience, what is a Gen Z?

Gen Z's and different researchers take different um uh different years.

I when I look at Gen Z's I am looking at 2000 between 1998 to 2000 to 2010 and some researchers say 2012 some research researchers say 2010 it really depends and the one after that is now called the alpha generation. So I typically take those years when I'm uh defining genes.

Oh okay. So I learned something new I didn't know about the alpha generation. So tell us about your day. What's a day like you when you're not coaching because you are a coach and so you're obviously doing you know that work but what's a normal day look like for you when you're not actually coaching.

So a normal day for me is surprisingly simple and intentional.

It starts with meditation, a little bit of journaling and um then I spend a few hours uh cooking for myself because um I believe in eating healthy and I believe food fuels your mind.

Mhm. Um I read a few emails and then I head to my yoga room which is my happy space. I spend 2 hours doing yoga, hot yoga. Um and then I come back to creating content, researching behavior patterns or designing workshops or looking through a speaking engagement that I am um you know working on a speaking engagement that I'm doing. And then as I like to call myself a serial networker, I create some space for meaningful conversations having um doing some networking online or in person.

Uh whether that's with a teen, a parent or a leader and uh because um I love to hear real stories and that's what keeps me human. So apart from the research bit, I like to connect to people and evenings are usually for a good walk uh with family or on my own or a good um podcast or a good documentary or a show

and um my routine isn't about being busy. It's really about staying curious and grounded.

Great. Yeah. Well, that's interesting. You talk about being connected and connecting. That's certainly some thing that I do too and that's how we actually met. So

yes,

I can certainly understand that. So you've spent years studying human behavior.

Is there one lesson about people that is transgenerational that doesn't necessarily tie to Gen Z, but something that you think is universal across all generations?

Universal across generations. People don't like being vulnerable, and that's every generation. Nobody likes to be vulnerable if they don't feel safe.

So the crossgenerational um challenges that we're talking about, half of them can be addressed, especially our older generations um made the younger generations feel safe and vice versa.

Uh if the younger generations made the older generations feel seen, heard, safe without judgment both ways. Um, vulnerability is a big issue with all generations.

As I go into schools, colleges, organizations, this is one challenge that I see, whether that's faculty, parents, students, any of which way. Um, everybody's scared to be vulnerable and there's a lot of judgment. So, if you step away from that,

we're good.

Yeah. Yeah. I can certainly relate to that. I think as a different generation to Gen Z, as a male, I feel very exposed when I'm vulnerable. And I I suppose the interpretation of that word needs uh some analysis. So what does being vulnerable mean to you?

I'll give you a small success story. Um there was a teenager who was um called herself an introvert. And I don't like this word introvert.

And I will talk about that in a different setting. Um she barely spoke in group sessions head down, no confidence. After a few weeks of coaching, I encouraged her to share one small thought with the group. She did and her idea sparked full discussion. Months later, she sent me a message saying, "That day was the first time I felt like my voice mattered. "

Um, it reminded me why I do what I do.

Um, I felt safe enough to speak up because you were in the room. I felt spa safe enough to speak up um and share my thoughts.

And sometimes the quietest breakthroughs are the most powerful.

Yeah.

So, yes, vulnerability is really about being feeling seen and heard. Yes.

And I suppose the flip side to being vulnerable is feeling safe, isn't it? So,

correct.

Overcoming the vulnerability and then getting into a safe spot.

Yes.

Well, that's great. So, and a success story as well. So, I'd like to switch gears now and talk a little bit about AI, which is the theme for the channel. Is AI hype or help? Now, you've seen the world before AI as I have and and before AI became mainstream, which is very recent in our history. So, what's the biggest change you've noticed? Um and the way people think uh and learn thanks to AI.

So I have to say there is an overload of information with um the internet and AI.

The overload of information was always there.

I think AI has made it more accessible. So to me the biggest shift is from memorizing information to navigating information because there is so much information. Today you can go into AI and you can ask anything literally anything.

M

so young people today focus less on storing facts and more on knowing how to ask smart questions like when I go into speaking engagement the level of um um engagement to asking questions has completely changed it's almost like people pre-prep the questions before using AI when they come into my speaking engagements um

by validating sources they apply um knowledge creativity they ask u because they're in a very confined fine environment, nobody's watching them. So they can ask all the questions that they want through AI and then tweak those questions which make them feel knowledgeable.

So AI according to me has turned learning into a more interactive inquirydriven process rather than a memorizing process.

Oh, amazing. Yeah, I suppose the information is there. No need to memorize it as long as figure out how to retrieve it.

Correct.

Yeah. Oh, that's interesting. How do you think AI is influencing the way families and generations communicate? You've touched on it a little bit. Let's dig a little bit more into that.

So, I think AI is becoming a translator, right,

between generations. Just like a young person can access AI, so can old person access. So, so can a middle-aged person can access AI. Everybody can access AI.

It helps simplify complex topics, personalize communication, and even bridge the language gap or the tech literacy gap that we're facing.

M M

but on the flip side it can also highlight the differences when one generation embraces AI and the other resists it. And this happens all the time when I'm where the room full of baby boomers and Gen Z's or millennials or Gen X's or alphas for that matter. Um I've named all the five generations. I'm sorry this is just I name generations because I'm I work with generations. I do so much of generational work that it very naturally comes to me.

Yes.

So I think one generation embraces AI and another resists it and the families that use AI collaboratively tend to have more curiosity and empathy in their conversation.

But it's become a translator because when somebody is authentically trying to create connection with the other generation and they don't understand it

then I have seen people turn to AI to build that connection.

Right. So, have you seen people actively go to their phone or their computer and type something in and then come back to the conversation?

Absolutely. All the time.

That's amazing.

Wow. I've never thought to do that myself.

I mean, I have to certainly on a Zoom call or something like that, I might type in a technical question, but not actually mid-con conversation.

Yeah,

it's amazing.

They do that.

I mean it may ne necessarily may not be mid conversation but it definitely happens within the with if you're sitting in a room and you have multiple generations talking and one generation doesn't understand the other one they they go to AI to understand it so it's happening it's not that quick the shift is not that visible but definitely there is a shift

amazing amazing yeah well I think communication is such a great uh an important theme to being successful in life and enjoying life is successful in work um and outside work. I'm a big proponent of that and constantly working on better communication all the time.

But next question then might be like have you seen AI um changing people's lives in a way that they're not perhaps even realizing it? Is there something that's happening that emerges from this that they're not actively engaged? Don't even realize that AI is is is behind it. I think personalization and the other day I was having this conversation with somebody where we were discussing that you're being heard all the time, right? Whether that's the whether that's the Alexa in your house, that's the Google in your house or everything is being personalized based on what you're typing, what you're hearing, what you're seeing.

M

so personalization everything from Netflix recommendation to spam filters to maps rerouting based on traffic everything is AIdriven and many people are using AI without even realizing it.

Um because AI uh whether you like it or not it's in the background curating your digital world.

Yeah. Yeah. When you go on Instagram and you search for something or you go on Facebook or you go on any other platform, it's almost like every platform is talking to each other and your digital world is being curated.

Yes. Yes.

So we now spend less time searching and more time choosing with what actually matters.

M so how do you There was a an article that I read last week about uh YouTube actually changing uh the content slightly to make it more appealing um without the creators or the audience knowing about that. How do you feel about that?

I think YouTube is a channel where everybody goes right the first thing when I don't know how to fix my a scratch on my car what do I do? I go onto YouTube. M

so I think it's a great idea because it does um help people find content more easily.

Mhm.

Um what that I don't I haven't heard of this before so I don't understand the technicality of it

but in my opinion I think it's a great idea because now if YouTube is shifting their content to meet the audience's need um in a more positive way then it's helping people find content easily that make sense

yeah I think so yeah I think um they were trying to tweak the uh tweak the presentation to make it uh maybe just to smooth out the skin and change the voice slightly. Um yeah, it's it's caused some controversy because creators like to think their work is untouched and um without their permission it's being slightly tweaked. Um yeah, so that was just some controversy around that.

All right. So do you believe that AI has made people perhaps a little more uh dependent especially the younger generation on the quick answers? So little history that I have in this is

I always remember asking my parents, you know, what does so and so mean? You know, what what's the biggest air aircraft? What's the biggest ship? Something like that or something. And they tell go and look it up. And I'd have to go to the library, find a book through the Jewey decimal system, open up the book. Well, it could take me all morning to find what the biggest ship was, whereas now I can do it in seconds. Do you think that's having an impact?

I think it's both.

Um, so AI offers tools for reflection like you know you have mood tracking, you have um the Apple Watch, you have writing prompts, you have coaching style conversations, but the convenience of instant answers can also discourage deeper thinking. Now it's easier, right? It's just you have a question, you go, you type it out, you get the answer, you regurgitate that answer.

Yeah.

So the impact really depends on how intentionally we use it. Are we using it as a mirror for self-rowth or are we using it as a shortcut?

Yeah. Yeah.

So, um it could go both ways. Like for instance, I've just been invited to speak on um to do a keynote to a room full of uh faculty.

It's a technology conference and they're asking me to bring the human component of how AI is not going to take away people's job because jobs because they're they're so worried that AI is going to take away everything from them that I have to bring in the human component of resilience and emotional growth and emotional regulation to ensure that people go out of a tech conference more um um human with a humanentric attitude and assured that AI is in addition to their jobs and it's not going to take away their jobs.

So I think it can go both ways depending on who the personality is.

That's a that's a fair answer I think. So uh good and bad there. So what about you?

How do you personally use AI uh in your life? Is it making things easier for you? Is it making things better for you? Uh I guess you can talk professionally and personally.

So I don't use AI personally. Um, I use AI with work primarily as a thinking partner. I have to say.

Mhm.

I use it to test ideas, find blind spots, pressure, you know, pressure test strategies because what it does for me is it accelerates the brainstorming component and gives me multiple perspectives

which leads to clearer decisions and more original work. And my keynotes are um my talks are fairly quick like I I keep a super busy schedule. So I am always on the move speaking somewhere.

So I have to draft up um talks and I have to draft up content very quickly. So when somebody comes at me which is a something that I'm not familiar with then I use it as a brainstorming tool.

Um and as a thinking partner but in my personal life I don't use AI.

Okay.

But I use it in my professional life. Yes.

Yes. Okay. So do you think it makes you uh more capable as a professional? Would you say having it helps?

Absolutely. Without a doubt. I think it um the minute you start thinking it as an ally rather than what's the opposite of ally? I don't know the word that I'm looking for. As an enemy. Yes.

And you embrace it, you use it very differently.

It's almost like um you having two competitors go face to face and say, "No, I'm better than you or you're better than me. " It's

so It helps me. It definitely helps me because it expands my brain,

you know. It gives me perspectives which I haven't looked at.

Right. Right. Right.

So that's why I said it it helps me ena it enables me to be it's it's my thinking partner.

It's my brainstorming tool.

That's great. Well, I think that leads us into the fact that do you think that there's parents, educators, other people, um even HR teams in companies? Should they change? Should they shift their approach to using AI? And and would that help?

And could you give some recommendations for them?

I totally think so. I think we need to move from AI replacesability to AI expandsability.

Treat AI as a skill amplifier, not learning to use a calculator on the internet.

The focus shouldn't be on preventing AI use, but on teaching responsible, thoughtful and creative use. Because the minute we use AI creatively, it can enhance your knowledge, it can enhance your capacity, it can help you show up differently, more informed.

So if you use it as a partner and if you put it out in schools and colleges and educators as an ally, it can completely change the way we use things and people will no longer be scared of them, but people will be more appreciative of what value add it has to their already existing um knowledge base.

Right. So, back to the your your focus topic of Gen Z, do you think organizations could use AI to better engage and communicate with Gen Z?

Yes. Um, I think it would be easier for uh we could use AI to listen at scale. Let's put it that analyze feedback.

You could do um you could do to get the cultural data to understand what motivates younger people, what motivates Gen Z and then personalize that um um to you personalize that communication style and those learning modules and career go growth tools to match their preference. Um I think that's how it can be used. It it can um you can understand the generations better

if you use it in the right way. So yes to answer that question yes absolutely um analyze what you're seeing use it as an analysis tool. So, do you think uh that someone in in HR perhaps or someone in an organization would be typing something into a to a ChatGPT type tool um when they've witnessed some behavior?

Do you think they would use it that way in the same way that you talked about the families doing it sort of retrospectively to to understand something?

Yes. Provided there is a a need or a desire to do it. I don't know if HR has the patience or would have the patience or the desire to do it like that. But yes,

I mean if you're not ready to pay consultants to come in to study the generational gap, that's another way of doing it.

Like I go into organizations and I study generational gaps. Um and I um um they hire me as a retainer to bridge the generational divide and teach and work with people on empathy, emotional intelligence and soft skills.

But if some organization doesn't want to do that, yes, that is one way to do it.

Right? So this this is a good point. So there's an a human element to this and an AI element. So if you were going to go into such an organization and help a HR, you would actually see some sort of a hybrid using AI and

human experts such as yourself.

Yes, absolutely. I mean AI could you could use HR could use AI to create shared learning spaces.

Um they could encourage cross generational mentorship supported by AI for instance I have a fivepillar blueprint which I speak to all of my HR professionals on um but supported they could use some tools like reverse mentoring skill swaps AI assisted coaching I mean if they really want to go that route

yes

um so introduce tech not as a replacement for human connection let there be a human connection by a consultant coming in to bridge that gap and understand that gap but um use it as a neutral loop that helps everyone learn from one another more effectively.

That's amazing.

So, is there anything that that you would like to to talk about here AI Gen Z that I haven't already asked you about?

Let's use let's get the fear of AI out

and let's treat AI as help

when used intentionally. That's how I started my um last 30 minutes with you is intentionality is extremely useful when using a tool. I mean intentionality is needed everywhere. That's how you start your day. That's how you do everything. But when you're using AI, it's extremely important. So start using it to enhance your thinking, not replacing it

because it can also take you in the other direction.

When you are using it as a tool, your thought processes can also die down because you're so AI dependent

that it is not enhancing your thinking. So use it intentionally

ask it'll help you ask better questions to use it um reflect you let it use it as a reflection tool and let it support your growth rather than shortcut your curiosity is what I'm going to say.

That's a great great summary. Thank you.

So we have one final question about the you know the theme which is do you see AI is hype or help could you summarize that in about one sentence what do you think

it's how you treat it how you use it is uh definitely help to me it's help but it could be a hype to another generation and I'm saying that in a generational context so if used intentionally it's help

otherwise it's a hypem All right. Well, this has been

It depends how you're looking at it.

Thank you, Dr. Anati Jane. Uh, it has been absolute pleasure. Um, I wish you all the luck with your coaching work with Gen Z's and um, I hope to see you again soon back on the podcast.

Thank you so much, Peter.

It was wonderful to be here. Thank you for having me. I appreciate you.

Thank you. Bye-bye.