Friction will not be tolerated
AI eliminates friction, so rising executives should do the same
👋 Hi, it's Greg and Taylor. Welcome to our newsletter on everything you wish your CEO told you about how to get ahead.
If your communication style creates friction, you’re going to struggle in the age of AI.
We’ve always had to tolerate friction in working with humans. People misunderstand requests, provide half-answers (or ones that are way too long), obfuscate the data, or give the wrong details. Annoying - but the cost of doing business - and not traditionally a dealbreaker as long as you had other strengths.
AI is changing that. It’s training us to expect zero friction between asking the question and getting the answer. A year ago, if you wanted to find something on Google, you had to click through a bunch of search results. Now the answer is summarized at the top of the page - zero friction.
AI’s ability to do this will accelerate rapidly, and our patience for friction will go to zero (mine already has). You can’t compete with AI on speed - you do need to compete on lack of friction.
Here’s how to do it.
- Greg
How you might be adding friction
In my experience, friction in communication turns up in a few different ways - all very common, all very annoying (and getting more annoying in the age of AI).
Not enough information. You ask a question like: “What’s the plan for the next product launch?” and the person says, “It’s next month.” So then you have to go back and ask for the exact date / launch details / etc.
Too much information. You ask, “How has the new consultant been doing?” and you get a 5-paragraph response with lots of extraneous details that don’t matter. This is often written with no bullets / guideposts to tell you what you’re reading.
Lack of data. The communication is missing a key data point or insight that would help drive home the point quickly.
Slowness. The person doesn’t respond quickly enough – either more than an hour for an urgent issue, or more than 24 hours for a non-urgent one. (Yes, you can’t compete with AI on speed – but being VERY slow will be even more noticeable now).
No anticipation of further needs. The person provides the information requested, but only that information - they don’t go a step further to anticipate what the follow-up question will be (or ask, “Would it be helpful to …?”).
Remove friction like an AI
One of AI’s superpowers is removing friction to information - so the next time you communicate something, ask, “Am I making this easier or harder than an AI would?” Here are a few tips based on how AI structures and delivers information.
1. Give the FULL answer – but make it quick. AI doesn't make you ask follow-up questions. If someone asks "What's our Q4 revenue looking like?" don't just say, “Good.” Say: “Q4 revenue is tracking 12% above plan at $2.3M, driven primarily by the enterprise deals that closed in November. We're on pace to hit $2.5M by year-end.” Complete, but concise.
2. Provide the answer, not a link to the answer. AI gives you the information directly, not homework. Don't say “it's in this document” or “check the dashboard.” Extract the relevant piece and present it. If someone needs the source for verification, include it at the end: “Revenue is $2.3M (source: November board deck, slide 7).”
3. Lead with the conclusion, then support it with 1-2 key data points. AI structures information in order of importance, not chronologically. Start with your bottom line: “We should delay the product launch,” then support it: “Beta testing shows 23% of users can't complete the core workflow, and fixing this will take 3-4 weeks.”
4. Give the answer in the context of the question. AI can generally intuit the intention behind questions – and often it reminds you of that context in its answer. If your boss asks "How's the new hire doing?" they're probably wondering about performance and retention, not their favorite lunch spot. Answer: “Given our goal to have her take over 3 major clients by Thanksgiving, Sarah’s ahead of expectations – I expect her to be handling Nike on her own by end of month.”
5. Put physical structure around your information. AI uses formatting to make information scannable. Use bullets or bold key terms (without going crazy with bolding). Make it easy for someone to find what they need in 3 seconds, even if they're skimming.
6. Anticipate the obvious follow-up questions. If you're reporting a problem, include what you're doing about it. If you're sharing good news, include what it means for the business. Save people from having to ping you again.
7. Provide options, not just problems. AI rarely gives you a problem without suggesting solutions. If you're raising an issue, come with 2-3 potential solutions ranked by your recommendation. Don't make people do the brainstorming work – do it for them, then let them choose or modify.
My advice
This shift is good for us. No one enjoys friction - it creates more work on both sides. Training yourself to remove friction will give you time back, smooth over your work relationships, and get you to a good output more quickly.
Great executives can take in information, extract value from it quickly, present a clear answer, and move on. We all love working with people like that - so make it your priority to be one.
You probably can’t create less friction than AI - but you should try to meet its standard. If you can do that, you can turn your attention to the area where humans can compete: judgement. The combination of zero friction plus human judgment is what people will pay for - we’ll write about it next week.
Have a great week,
Greg & Taylor