🎧 Leadership Rules with Jeff Utecht
Title: AI Can Predict. Humans Must Decide.

AI is moving fast. But are we moving thoughtfully?

In this episode of Leadership Rules, Nick and Marnie sit down with Jeff Utecht, educator, speaker, and author of Human Still Required, to explore what leadership looks like in a world increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence.

Jeff brings a powerful reminder: the real risk is not that AI replaces us. It’s that we stop thinking for ourselves.

In this conversation, we explore:

• Why “cognitive surrender” is a growing concern in the age of AI
• The difference between prediction and true understanding
• Why judgment is the one skill AI cannot replace
• How leaders should rethink effort, productivity, and performance
• What it means to lead through a double transition in the workplace

Jeff also shares why listening may be the most underrated leadership skill right now—and how staying curious is the key to navigating rapid change.

If you care about leadership, education, or staying human in a tech-driven world, this episode will challenge how you think about both AI and your role in it.

📍 Learn more and connect with Jeff Utecht
Website → https://jeffutecht.com

Book → https://humanstillrequired.com

Podcast → Shifting Schools

Subscribe for more conversations on leadership, learning, and what it takes to thrive in a rapidly changing world.

#LeadershipRules #JeffUtecht #HumanStillRequired #AILeadership #FutureOfWork #CriticalThinking #StayHuman

🎧 Leadership Rules with Matt Miller
Title: Keep the Main Thing the Main Thing

AI is everywhere. So what actually matters now?

In this episode of Leadership Rules, Nick and Marnie sit down with Matt Miller, educator, author of AI Literacy in Any Class, and creator of the Ditch That Textbook movement, to talk about how teaching and leadership are evolving in an AI saturated world.

Matt challenges the idea that we need more tools and instead focuses on something more important.

Better thinking.

In this conversation, we explore:

• Why “ditch the textbook” is really about ditching passive learning
• How AI literacy shows up in everyday classroom moments
• Why students don’t need to master the tech, but must learn to question it
• The risk of going all in or all out on technology
• Why critical thinking, discernment, and creativity matter more than ever

Matt also shares practical ways to bring AI into the classroom without losing the human element, including how to use imperfect AI outputs to spark deeper thinking and discussion.

If you care about education, leadership, or preparing students for a future we cannot fully predict, this episode will reshape how you think about both technology and teaching.

📍 Learn more and connect with Matt Miller
Newsletter → https://ditch.link/join

Book → AI Literacy in Any Class available on Amazon

Subscribe for more conversations on leadership, learning, and what it takes to thrive in a rapidly changing world.

#LeadershipRules #MattMiller #AILiteracy #EducationLeadership #CriticalThinking #DitchThatTextbook

🎧 Leadership Rules with Scott Martin
Title: Success Isn’t the Goal. Flourishing Is.

What if the goal of school wasn’t just success… but flourishing?

In this episode of Leadership Rules, Nick and Marnie sit down with Dr. Scott Martin, Executive Director of the Odyssey Leadership Academy, to talk about how leadership can create environments where both students and educators truly thrive.

Scott believes that leadership is both art and science, and that great leaders carry a deep responsibility to care for the people in their community. He also challenges many traditional assumptions about school, including grades, agency, and what real learning looks like.

In this conversation, we explore:

• The difference between leadership and management
• Why the leader sets the “nervous system” of an organization
• How flourishing can become a school’s North Star
• What happens when students are given real agency in their learning
• Why resilience grows when students create learning instead of just consuming it

Scott also shares how Odyssey Leadership Academy empowers students to design projects, teach classes, and even build real-world solutions like a student-built tiny home.

If you care about leadership, education, and building cultures where people thrive, this episode will challenge the way you think about success.

📍 Learn more about Odyssey Leadership Academy
https://OdysseyLeadershipAcademy.org

Subscribe for more conversations about leadership, character, and building organizations where people flourish.

#LeadershipRules #ScottMartin #EducationLeadership #HumanFlourishing #SchoolLeadership #StudentAgency

🎧 Leadership Rules with EJ Carrion
Title: Think in Decades, Not Days

What does it mean to lead in a world where students are living three lives at once?

Personal life.
School life.
Phone life.

In this high energy conversation, EJ Carrion challenges us to rethink education, leadership, and what it means to prepare young people for a future that looks nothing like the past.

EJ is the co founder of Student Success Agency, a first generation college graduate, Gates Millennium Scholar, and someone who believes schools must evolve from Blockbuster to Netflix if they want to stay relevant.

In this episode, we talk about:

• Why the phone is not just a distraction but a door
• What a “digital YMCA” could look like for students
• How to build agency in young people
• Why leadership is art, not science
• What it means to be a pirate ship leader instead of the Navy
• And why selflessness is compound interest

EJ also shares three principles that guide his leadership:

Think in decades instead of days
Selflessness is compound interest
Choose we instead of me

If you care about student success, digital culture, human connection, or the future of public education, this one will stretch your thinking.

📍 Connect with EJ Carrion
LinkedIn → EJ Carrion

Subscribe for more conversations that challenge how we lead, learn, and live.

#LeadershipRules #EJCarrion #StudentSuccess #EducationLeadership #DigitalAge #ThinkInDecades #WeInsteadOfMe

🎧 New Episode: Leadership Rules with Dr. Doan Winkel
Title: Say No More Often

What does it take to be a bold, curious, values-driven leader in today’s world of education and entrepreneurship?

Dr. Doan Winkel joins Marnie and Nick for a powerful conversation about disrupting the status quo, helping students find their voice, and saying no to anything that doesn’t serve your mission.

In this episode, we explore:

✅ Why "titleless" leadership might be the most powerful kind
✅ How higher ed trains students to wait for permission
✅ How AI can free teachers to focus on what really matters
✅ What tiny acts of courage do to build momentum
✅ And why authenticity is the new authority

If you’ve ever wanted to lead with more clarity, curiosity, and purpose — this one’s for you.

📍 Connect with Doan Winkel
LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/doanwinkel/

Substack → https://howtoteachwithai.substack.com/

🎧 Listen, rate, and follow for more leadership conversations that blend insight, inspiration, and a little bit of rebellion.

#LeadershipRules #DoanWinkel #EntrepreneurshipEducation #SayNoMoreOften #HigherEdInnovation #AuthenticLeadership #AIinEducation

🎮 New Episode: Anthony Conta on Games, Growth, and Getting Unstuck
Title: Make Your Next Move a Game

This week on Leadership Rules, Anthony Conta brings the fun. He’s a UX designer, product strategist, professor, and the creator of Funemployed (now Bad Interviews). Oh, and he once taught chess to preschoolers.

In this episode, Anthony joins Marnie and Nick to talk about the intersections of design, teaching, creativity, and career reinvention. It’s part improv show, part product jam session, and all-around inspiration.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

🎲 Why career detours are often the best part of the story
🎓 How teaching forces clarity in leadership
🧠 Why UX and leadership both start with empathy
📦 How Anthony designed a hands-on UX textbook that doesn’t suck
🏁 And why “just start” might be the best advice no one takes

This one’s for the curious, the creative, and the career shape-shifters. If you’ve ever wondered what’s next, Anthony makes a strong case for playing your way into the answer.

📍 Connect with Anthony Conta
LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyconta/

Medium → https://medium.com/@anthonyconta

🎲 Check out Bad Interviews (formerly Funemployed) wherever you buy your games.
📘 Grab The Art and Science of UX Design online or at your favorite bookstore.

Subscribe for more conversations with rule breakers, design thinkers, and everyday leaders redefining what it means to show up with curiosity.

#LeadershipRules #AnthonyConta #UXDesign #CareerPath #BadInterviews #GameDesign #CuriousLeadership

🎧 New Episode: Leadership Rules with Dr. John Barile
Title: Leading From the Core

In this episode, Dr. John Barile joins Nick and Marnie to talk about what it really means to lead with purpose, clarity, and character. As an experienced school leader and author of Leading from the Core, John brings both heart and strategy to a conversation about trust, team culture, and the evolving role of leadership in education and beyond.

He shares insights on how to lead through change, why authenticity builds influence, and what it takes to create schools — and workplaces — people actually want to be part of.

Whether you're in education or any leadership role, this episode will challenge you to reconnect with what matters most and lead from a deeper place.

📍 Connect with Dr. John Barile
🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-john-w-barile-sr-33bab5169/

📖 Leading from the Core now available wherever books are sold.

Subscribe for more conversations that explore leadership, purpose, and how to build something meaningful — from the inside out.

#LeadershipRules #JohnBarile #LeadingFromTheCore #SchoolLeadership #AuthenticLeadership #TeamCulture

🎧 New Episode: Leadership Rules with Leah Leverich
Title: Redefining Success: How Curiosity and Courage Shape Career Paths

What if the best leadership move you ever made was not going to college?

In this episode of Leadership Rules, we sit down with Leah Leverich — host of the Decision Day podcast and Brand Manager at Big Brand Ventures — to explore what it means to take an unconventional path with purpose. Leah shares how she navigated the decision to skip college, why she launched a podcast about career journeys, and how curiosity continues to shape her leadership voice.

You’ll hear:

✨ Why “follow your passion” can be confusing (and what to ask instead)
🛣️ The power of job shadowing for self-discovery
📦 How to reframe comparison and own your choices
🎤 What podcasting taught Leah about listening, leadership, and community
🧭 And why courage sometimes means doing what most people won’t

Whether you're mentoring a young leader or rethinking your own path, this conversation is a powerful reminder that success isn’t one-size-fits-all.

📬 Reach Leah directly via DecisionDayPodcast@gmail.com, or at LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leah-leverich/
🔗 Explore more from Leah → Decision Day on Instagram
💼 Check out Big Brand Ventures → bigbrandventures.com