A CEO I work with did something remarkable in a town hall meeting. He started by saying: “I’ve been trying to use AI tools this month, and honestly, I’m struggling. I’m going to share what I’ve learned and where I’m still figuring things out.”

He then proceeded to demonstrate—including his mistakes—how he’d been experimenting with AI for leadership communication drafting.

The effect on the organisation was profound. If the CEO could admit to struggling with AI, everyone else had permission to struggle too. Learning and experimentation exploded.

This is leadership vulnerability in action—and it’s one of the most powerful tools for AI transformation that leaders rarely use.

What Leadership Vulnerability Means

Leadership vulnerability in the AI context means:

• Admitting you don’t have all the answers
• Sharing your own learning struggles publicly
• Asking questions rather than projecting certainty
• Demonstrating that learning AI is challenging for everyone
• Creating psychological safety by going first

It doesn’t mean:

• Pretending incompetence you don’t have
• Abdicating leadership responsibility
• Avoiding making decisions
• Wallowing in uncertainty

Vulnerability is strength in service of others’ development, not weakness or paralysis.

Why Vulnerability Matters for AI Adoption

Leadership vulnerability particularly matters for AI because:

AI Levels the Playing Field

Unlike many technologies where leaders could delegate understanding to technical staff, AI affects how everyone works—including leaders. Leaders face the same learning curve as their teams.

Pretending otherwise is obviously false and undermines credibility.

Learning Requires Safety

People don’t learn when they feel unsafe. If leaders project “AI is easy, just figure it out,” they create unsafe conditions for those who struggle.

Visible leader struggle normalises the learning challenge.

Anxiety Needs Acknowledgment

AI creates anxiety across organisations. Leaders who ignore or dismiss anxiety don’t make it go away—they drive it underground where it undermines adoption.

Acknowledging complexity and uncertainty validates what people are experiencing.

Authenticity Builds Trust

People can tell when leaders are performing confidence they don’t feel. That performance damages trust.

Authentic admission of learning builds trust that transfers to other aspects of leadership.

The Vulnerability Paradox

Here’s the paradox: leaders who admit vulnerability become more credible, not less.

Imagine two leaders:

Leader A: “AI is straightforward. Our competitors are adopting it, we need to as well. Take the training and start using the tools. It’s not that complicated.”

Leader B: “AI is changing rapidly, and honestly, I’m still learning what it means for our work. I’ve been experimenting with some tools—some successfully, some not. I’d like to share what I’m learning and hear what you’re discovering.”

Which leader do you trust more? Which creates conditions for genuine learning?

Vulnerability signals confidence in yourself even while acknowledging uncertainty about the situation. That’s a stronger position than false certainty.

How Leaders Can Model Vulnerability

Practical ways leaders can demonstrate learning vulnerability:

Share Your Learning Journey

Talk openly about your AI learning:

• “I’ve been spending 30 minutes each morning experimenting with AI tools”
• “This week I tried using AI for meeting summaries—here’s what worked and what didn’t”
• “I made this mistake with AI and here’s what I learned”

Specific sharing is more powerful than abstract acknowledgment.

Ask Questions Publicly

Don’t pretend to know everything. Ask questions:

• “Can someone explain how this works? I’m not sure I understand.”
• “What have you learned that I should know?”
• “What am I missing in my thinking about this?”

Questions signal that not knowing is acceptable.

Demonstrate Live Learning

Show your learning in real-time:

• Demo AI use including when it goes wrong
• Think out loud as you work through challenges
• Show the iterations, not just the polished result

Demonstrations make vulnerability concrete and relatable.

Acknowledge Uncertainty

Be honest about what you don’t know:

• “I’m not sure how this will unfold”
• “We’re learning as we go”
• “This is new territory for me too”

Acknowledging uncertainty is more credible than false certainty.

Celebrate Others’ Learning

When team members share their learning:

• Recognise and thank them publicly
• Ask follow-up questions that show genuine interest
• Share their learnings more broadly

Recognition reinforces that learning is valued.

The Boundaries of Vulnerability

Vulnerability has appropriate limits:

Still Lead

Vulnerability doesn’t mean abdicating leadership:

• Still make decisions when decisions are needed
• Still provide direction and expectations
• Still hold people accountable
• Still manage the transformation

Vulnerability is about learning openness, not leadership abandonment.

Choose Your Moments

Not every moment requires vulnerability:

• Crisis moments may need steady confidence
• Some decisions need decisive communication
• Certain audiences expect certain approaches

Apply vulnerability strategically.

Authentic Only

Don’t perform vulnerability you don’t feel:

• Fake vulnerability is worse than none
• People sense inauthenticity
• Only share genuine struggles

If you actually have AI figured out, share genuine learning challenges from elsewhere.

Appropriate Disclosure

Not all struggles are workplace-appropriate:

• Share professional learning challenges
• Keep personal struggles that aren’t relevant private
• Maintain appropriate leader-team boundaries

Vulnerability about AI learning is different from therapeutic disclosure.

The Organisational Effect

When leaders model vulnerability consistently:

Permission Spreads

If the CEO admits struggle, VPs feel safer admitting struggle. If VPs admit struggle, directors feel safer. Permission cascades.

Psychological Safety Increases

Teams with vulnerable leaders have higher psychological safety scores. Higher safety enables more experimentation and learning.

Learning Accelerates

When people feel safe to struggle publicly, they engage more fully with learning. They ask questions. They share failures. Learning accelerates.

Innovation Emerges

Psychological safety enables creative risk-taking. People propose ideas they’d have kept quiet in unsafe environments.

Trust Deepens

Authentic leadership builds genuine trust. Trust makes everything else easier—change management, communication, engagement.

Overcoming Resistance to Vulnerability

Leaders often resist vulnerability:

“Leaders Should Have Answers”

Reframe: Leaders should provide direction, not pretend omniscience. Admitting learning while providing direction is stronger than false certainty.

”Vulnerability Shows Weakness”

Reframe: Strategic vulnerability shows confidence. Only confident leaders can admit uncertainty without feeling threatened.

”My Team Needs Confidence”

Reframe: Your team needs realistic confidence, not false confidence. They can tell the difference. Authentic uncertainty with committed learning is more reassuring.

”I’ll Lose Credibility”

Reframe: Research consistently shows vulnerability increases credibility. You’ll gain respect, not lose it.

”I’m Actually Struggling Too Much”

Reality: If you’re genuinely struggling significantly, that’s real and worth acknowledging. But also get help. Vulnerability isn’t a substitute for capability development.

Practical Starting Points

For leaders wanting to practice vulnerability:

In Your Next Meeting

• Share one AI experiment you tried recently
• Include what worked and what didn’t
• Ask what others are learning

In Your Next Communication

• Acknowledge the complexity of AI transformation
• Share your personal learning journey
• Invite dialogue about challenges

With Your Direct Reports

• One-on-ones: Ask what they’re struggling with, share your own struggles
• Team meetings: Model learning in front of the group
• Feedback: Thank people who share learning failures

With Peers

• Share learning struggles with peer leaders
• Create peer support for AI learning
• Model vulnerability horizontally, not just vertically

Start small. Build comfort. Expand practice.

The Transformation Multiplier

Leadership vulnerability might seem like a soft skill peripheral to AI transformation. It’s not.

It’s a transformation multiplier.

Organisations where leaders model learning vulnerability:

• Adopt AI faster
• Learn more effectively
• Innovate more readily
• Navigate change more successfully

The investment is minimal. The return is substantial.

Lead with vulnerability. Watch your organisation transform.