Author: Andrew Embry

If you mixed diet mountain dew, funk music, dragons, hip hop, superheroes, and lightning in a blender you’d end up with Andrew Embry. He is part wordsmith and part alchemist, able to use his Batman utility belt to turn anything and everything into a story worth telling that is equal parts insightful, memorable, inspiring, humorous, and entertaining. Andrew is comfortably creative in almost any setting, but especially when he is performing spoken word poetry. His enthusiasm for words comes from the way he loves people and the little nuances of life that make it worth living.

Q1 2025 Self-Reflection (3-26-25)

It’s a bonus blog! I hope you’re excited 😉 For the past few years I’ve used the last Wednesday of the first quarter to share a blog on doing quarterly check-ins for work and yourself. This will be a long email, because I’m sharing my own self-assessment.

We have our first performance management coming up in the next month. During this check-in we will talk through some of these questions. What are 2-3 highlights? What are 2-3 opportunities to do better? What are some learnings from Q1 I can apply moving forward?

What does this have to do anything? While this is great for work, we could apply this same thinking to our personal lives as well. What are some of your goals for 2025? How did you do with them in Q1? Have you stopped to CELEBRATE your progress? Stop RIGHT NOW and celebrate something you’ve achieved. After you celebrate, then you can reflect and see if there are any gaps. If you have gaps, why do you have gaps? What happened? What got in the way? How can you adjust to reach your goals for this quarter?

The challenge: Will you take the time to do a quarterly check-in? What changes will you make to set yourself up for the rest of the year?

Bonus: Here is my review based on the dimensions in my life I set goals for. Hopefully, it sparks a thought or two for you. In case no one has told you lately, “YOU GOT THIS!”

Rebuild (B+)- This is my word/theme for the year. I wanted to make repairs AND extensive changes. I’m giving myself an B+, because all of the momentum I’ve built back and am taking advantage of. I’d say the trend for all categories is that the first 6 weeks of the quarter were bumpy, and from there I’ve been on a great upward trajectory.
Mental Health (A)- The goal is to feel like I’m in a good, strong, solid mental state. I feel I’m in the best headspace that I’ve been in a hot minute. I have a lot to love and celebrate in life right now. I think I’m also doing a better job of practicing radical acceptance and recognizing “it is what it is.”
Physical Health (B-)- The goal is to build strength, aiming for increasing strength by around 15%. I couldn’t find an exercise routine or rhythm in January or February. I’ve been crushing it in March and making sure I’m prioritizing my time to hit the gym. I’m reestablishing my strength baselines, so I can track that more throughout the year. I would like to walk/run more, mainly so I can make sure I’m prepared for my obstacle course races. First one is in May!
Family (B+)-The goal is to feel like I’m being an amazing husband and dad. I’m feeling pretty good about things right now. I can feel my family start to evolve into the next phase with my son turning 11 and my daughter almost 13. It’s cool watching them grow and leading beside my wife. I will honestly say I’ve been working more hours than I’d like, but I think that will balance out in the future.
Career (B+)- The goal is to feel like I’m delivering magic. From the end of the year through Q1, I feel like I’ve been delivering some Hufflepuff magic, and that folks are valuing it. The whole feeling valued piece is huge. I’m also on the verge of rolling out a few things I’ve been working on for the better part of a year, and that’s adding even more positivity. With that said, the past few months have also been a humbling experience and a reminder that it’s impossible to juggle everything all of the time. I’ve definitely had a few balls drop in Q1. Some of them have been rubber. A couple of them have been glass. As part of the radical acceptance piece, I’m doing better at embracing it for what it is and I’m proud that despite all of the crazy I was still able to do some pretty darn amazing things. Luckily, the crazy is starting to become more manageable. In the midst of all the change and organizational evolution, I feel like I’m getting some stability, which might be a weird thing to say 😉. As we continue to fill open roles, we can better distribute the workload. Additionally, as we take confident steps toward embracing a new future, this stability will become stronger and enable the team and I to reach our potential.
Financial (B)- The goal is to ensure we are saving/investing money in the right way. I’ve already shifted money for investments. I am wasting a bit too much money on eating out right now. I want to tighten that up in Q2.

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry

iPhones, AI, and Embracing a Product Mindset (3-26-25)

Last week was about AI, tools, and expectations. I want to dive deeper into this area by exploring iPhones, AI, and adopting a product mindset.

It’s hard to believe that the first iPhone came out in 2007. I think I still had a Motorola Razr phone then. 😉 The first iPhone launched with a 3.5 in LCD screen, basic camera, and maximum storage of 16GB. Today’s iPhone 16 Pro has a 6.7 in Super Retina XDR display, triple camera, and a maximum storage of 1TB. That is a MASSIVE tech evolution.

This didn’t happen by accident. This happened because of the choice Apple made. Apple had the opportunity to choose between two things. They could either launch the iPhone fully knowing it was good but not perfect, or they could make the iPhone perfect before they launched it. If they would have tried to make the iPhone perfect, it never would have launched. Instead, they were brave enough to embrace a product mindset. They were willing to launch version 1, fully knowing they would have to evolve it over time.

What does this have to do with AI or anything else? I’ve been leading and working on various AI initiatives over the past couple of years. There is ALWAYS the pressure to make something perfect before rolling it out. There is ALWAYS the fear that the AI solution won’t instantly meet all of the audience’s needs. This pressure and fear often leads to never delivering something tangible, because we are scared to not be perfect. Have you ever felt this about any of your work?

Similar to Apple, I’ve had to work to embrace the product mindset. This has been a shift for me. I’ve had to learn to accept that something that is delivered with room to grow is SUPERIOR to something that never gets off the shelf because it’s waiting to be perfect. I’ve had to learn to embrace all the feedback and questions that come with a version 1 as fuel for growth vs criticism about my shortcomings.

The challenge- How can you embrace more of a product mindset? Will you be strong enough to embrace that delivered with room to grow is better than something that never gets off the shelf?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry

AI, Tools, and Expectations

Last week was about my kids using ChatGPT and not limiting our thinking. This week is about AI, tools, and expectations.

Let’s say that you needed to assemble something, so you grab a wrench out of your toolbox. You use the wrench to fasten the nuts and bolts. Then, you realize there are screws you need to insert. Your wrench won’t be able to insert the screws. Does this make the wrench bad? Would you throw the wrench away, because it wasn’t good at solving this challenge? I’m guessing you wouldn’t. I hope you’d recognize the value and the limitations of the wrench, and every other tool in your arsenal.

Let’s connect some dots. We should apply this same thinking to AI. I’ve been in conversations exploring different AI tools and heard people say, “It can’t do X, so I don’t know if it’s any good.” Have you ever heard someone say something like that? This would be like saying, “This wrench doesn’t work for every single situation, so that means wrenches are bad.” It’s true that the tool couldn’t do X. However, the tool could do A, B, and C and get you 70% of the way there in minutes vs the weeks it would take you to do this manually. That is powerful. That is valuable.

Whether it’s wrenches and screwdrivers from a toolbox or types of AI applications, it’s important to have the right expectation for each tool. We don’t expect a wrench to be perfect and solve all problems. Instead, we understand we need a variety of tools to be successful. In a similar way, we shouldn’t treat AI as if it is just one tool. AI spans a variety of tools and use cases, each with their own benefits and limitations.

The challenge: How will you properly set expectations for various AI tools?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry

My Kids, ChatGPT, and Not Being Limited in our Thinking (3-12-25)

This week we are going to kick off a new series focused on things I’ve learned about AI over the past almost 2 years in my role leading various AI initiatives. This one just so happens to be about my kids, ChatGPT, and not being limited in our thinking.

Shortly after ChatGPT was launched, I introduced my kids to the technology. While they may not have understood what a large language model was or how it worked, I helped them understand the role it could play. Essentially, I told them it was like an assistant for them to use to explore ideas.

A couple of weeks later, we were sitting at the dinner table and I asked everyone what they had done that day. My kids explained to me how they created a new game with ChatGPT. I was shocked by this and asked them to tell me more. They explained how they told ChatGPT that they wanted to play a game inspired by their favorite cartoon, Owl House, which included epic battle against evil villains and took about an hour to play. With this prompt, ChatGPT created the rules, plot, and setting for their game. I asked how they came up with the idea to do this, because I never would have thought of it in a million years. Their response was basically, “You said it could help brainstorm, so why wouldn’t we try that?” By the way, that’s some pretty good prompting. #prouddad

What does this have to do with anything? At the time, I would have never thought of using ChatGPT to create a game. I had been stuck in my normal day to day frame and unable to see beyond it. I hadn’t realized it at the time, but I had limited AI to only certain use cases. When my kids shared their experience, it was a nudge that I need to make sure that I’m not the one limiting the potential of emerging technology. Now, instead of asking, “Where does AI fit?” I ask, “How can we use AI to enhance what’s possible?” The first question assumes there are limited places where AI can be helpful. The second question assumes that there is always a chance to leverage AI to enhance things. This second question causes me to lean in with curiosity and a willingness to explore potential.

The challenge: How will you ensure your thinking is free and unlimited?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry

Parenting and the Power of Being Kind and Caring (3-5-25)

Our last entry was about little signs of support. This week is about parenting and the power of being caring and kind.

Last week, Alice (almost 13) was having a tough time. I talked to her a bit about it. Later that night, I heard Alice telling my wife how I had been so helpful to her. My heart swelled when I heard her say that. If I’m entirely honest, I have no idea what I did. I can’t think of any special tactic or some magic question or phrase I used. Instead, Alice shared, “He was so caring and kind.”

What does this have to do with anything? Yesterday, was the first day of a market research supplier partner conference. I ran into someone I hadn’t seen in years. We had worked together on a few things when she first joined her company, and then I hadn’t crossed paths with her too much since. I was so excited to see her and how far she had come in her career. Then, she looked at me and said something like, “You may not even know this, but you were like an important part of my early career.” I was shocked. I had no clue I had such an impact on her. If I’m entirely honest, I have no idea what I did that could have made her feel that way. I can’t think of any special nuggets I shared with her. I don’t remember imparting any specific wisdom. I can’t think of any secret market research techniques I showed her. Instead, she went on to explain how I was caring and kind when she started out, and that made all the difference.

Think about the people who have had a positive impact on you in in your career. If I asked you to explain what specifically they did, you might struggle. However, I bet for all of them you would say that they cared about you and were kind. Those two simple things are so powerful. Those two simple things always matter.

The challenge- In a world where it is easy to be uncaring and cruel, will you have the strength to be caring and kind?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry

Parenting and Little Signs of Support (2-26-25)

Last week was about parenting and setting incentives. This week is about parenting and little signs of support.

Recently, Cameron auditioned for a role in a local production of Finding Nemo. This was a big step for him. He had been in plays before, but this was the first time he auditioned for a speaking role. He put in a lot of effort to get ready. Ultimately, he earned the part of Nigel the pelican. My wife and I wanted to show our support of him and his accomplishment. She was scrolling on Amazon when she found a fun pelican t-shirt she was going to buy for Cam to celebrate his accomplishment. I laughed and asked, “Do they have one in my size?” Check out the pic on the right. Cam got a huge kick out of the fact that I got a shirt just like his and that we could be twins.

What does this have to do with anything? This week’s story shows how appreciated a small show of support can be. The shirts were relatively cheap. There was nothing fancy or flashy. Still, it showed Cam that we saw him and were proud of his accomplishments.

Think about work for a minute. Think about all the ways people show you small signs of support and what that means to you. Maybe, they buy you a coffee. Maybe, they send you a fun meme. Maybe, they send you a quick note. No matter what they do, I’m sure their small sign of support means something. Wouldn’t it be nice if we gave and received these small signs of support more often?

The challenge- What is something small you can do to show you support and appreciate someone today?

Bonus challenge- Are you a peliCAN or a peliCAN’T?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry

Parenting and Setting Incentives (2-19-25)

Last week was about parenting, cleaning the house, and being flexible. This week is about parenting and creating incentives.

We already have 2 cats in our house, but my son Cameron (11) really wants his own cat. My wife and I ultimately agreed that he could get one for his 12^th birthday. Cam, ever the negotiator, talked to his to uncover what he could do to get it sooner and said he was willing to do anything to make this happen. My wife and I saw this as an opportunity to provide an incentive for Cam to do the right thing to earn the cat sooner.

Before setting the incentive, the first thing my wife and I did was talk about our overarching goal for Cam, which is for him to grow up to be a kind and compassionate self-sufficient human. From there, we got VERY SPECIFIC about what behaviors he could work on building now that would lead to this. Based on our understanding of our son, we settled on three things. First, we wanted him to get better at doing his chores without being asked or reminded, because this would help him learn how to take care of himself and his future house. Second, we wanted to help him get better at stepping outside of his comfort zone, which in this case includes trying new foods which is really hard for him. Third, we wanted him to continue to develop the ability to advocate for himself in situations, whether that is clearly expressing a boundary or just speaking up for himself. With these things in mind, I developed a point system and Excel sheet tracker that shows his progress over time. If he does those three things relatively consistently he will get his cat early. We talked to Cam about these things, and he’s on board. We even through in some extra hard bonus things worth a lot of points, and he’s strongly considering doing those things too.

How does this connect with anything? Often when we think of incentives we think of base pay, bonuses, or some other compensation. However, in my experience, we don’t do the best job thinking about the behaviors we are trying to drive in a culture or an organization. Then, since we haven’t truly thought about the behaviors we are trying to drive, we don’t have a way to directly link those behaviors with incentives (compensation, bonuses, verbal praise, Inspire points, etc.). Without that direct link, it’s difficult to reinforce the behaviors we want to see, which makes it hard to drive behavior change.

The challenge- Do you know what behaviors you are trying to drive? Do your incentives connect to those behaviors?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry

Parenting, Cleaning, and Adapting as a Leader (2-12-25)

Be stubborn about your goals and flexible about your methods. | Life ... This week we are going to kick off a series about lessons I’ve learned from being a dad. This week is about parenting, cleaning the house, and being flexible and adaptable when leading others.

When I was a kid and would help my family clean the house it would look like this. My mom would blast music (usually Prince, Rod Stewart or Alanis Morisette). With the music blaring we would all start jumping in and helping with little direction. When I initially tried this approach with my own kids, it didn’t go so well. In case I’ve never mentioned it, we have some neurodivergence in my house, so cleaning the way I did as a kid is EXTREMELY overwhelming for my kids. The loud music is overstimulating and the lack of clarity on what needs to be done is anxiety inducing. Trying to clean this way would result in everyone being overstimulated, grumpy, and the house not getting clean. #failure

After failing a few times, I needed to reevaluate the situation. At the end of the day, my goals are to get the house clean and to help my kids become more self-sufficient. I’ve learned to be flexible in HOW I achieve those goals. When I clean with my kids, we don’t play music to avoid overstimulation. Also, I create a list of the tasks and add some gamification, so there is clear direction. We don’t clean the house. We save Hyrule! (a nod to The Legend of Zelda video game series) My list might look like, “Beat the Water Temple aka Clean the Bathrooms for 50 points,” or “Straighten up Goron City aka The Kitchen for 20 points.” My kids then methodically work through the list, accomplishing tasks, and checking stuff off until the house is clean. It’s very different from the way I grew up cleaning, but it is still very effective.

Where exactly is this going? As a leader, it’s your job to enable the other people around you to be successful. Often, this means being strict about the goal, but being flexible in HOW to achieve that goal. Did my kids have to clean like I did in order to be successful? No. We found a way that works for them and enabled their success. Think about work. How often has a leader more or less forced you to do something their way, even though it wasn’t the only path to success? What were the consequences of that? When I’ve had those experiences, I’ve often felt disengaged and often saw how more value could have been provided if the leader would have just been a little more open to thinking differently.

The challenge: As a leader are you being adaptable and flexible enough to enable others to be successful?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry

Bonus Blog- The Power of Kind Words

Bonus blog entry for the week about the power of kind words. In my blog last week I talked about how I didn’t feel I accomplished all the things I wanted to in January. If I’m being honest, life and work kicked my butt the entire month. It felt like I was juggling balls, all of them were glass, and I was letting quite a few of them fall and shatter. In the midst of feeling like an utter failure, one of my partners sent me this email.

“I could tell you have a lot going on for you this week, and it seems like you’ve been under a lot of stress. I just wanted to pop in to say that you’re doing a great job, and you’re easily one of my favorite clients to work with. You handle yourself so well and I value our partnership a lot. Keep being awesome and have a great weekend!”

What does this have to do with anything? Have you ever felt like you were a total failure? That’s where I was, and then I received that email. I can’t begin to tell you how much I needed that message, especially because this partner is one of the ones I felt I was failing the most. That short message changed the trajectory of my week and is carrying me into this week. This short email reminded me of two things. First, we are likely never as big of a failure as we feel like we are. Second, there is a lot of power in sharing an uplifting message with someone.

The challenge- Lift someone up today. Write them a short message showing them some love and appreciation. Create a positive ripple in the universe.

Bonus- If no one has told you lately, YOU’RE AWESOME! You are being so strong in the midst of all kinds of swirl, change, and challenges. YOU ARE ENOUGH and you are a gloriously beautiful messy human 😉

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry

Goals and Celebrating Progress (2-5-25)

This is the last in our series about goals. This week is about celebrating progress.

If I’m being honest, I’m not particularly happy with how January played out for me. There was travel, a lot of all-day workshops, and an illness that knocked me on my butt for like 1.5 weeks. It left me feeling like I hadn’t accomplished anything meaningful on the work or life front.

I was talking about something work related and sharing how I felt like a failure and the person replied with, “But look at all the progress that has been made. It’s not done yet, but it’s come so far. In fact, you’re so much further than I thought you’d be at this point on it.” It was a great reminder that I had been so focused on the finish line that I had never paused to appreciate my progress.

Let’s make some connections. Have you ever had a week or month go by, looked up, and then felt like a complete failure? Please tell me I’m not the only one 😉 It’s easy to get so lost in the daily grind that you don’t ever realize that all those steps you have taken add up. I’d bet that if you would just pause a moment to realize how far you’ve come, you would feel completely different.

The challenge: Will you appreciate and celebrate the progress you have made?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry