Smart Leaders are Betting Big!

In partnership with

Coach Will here…..

Over the past few months, I've been immersing myself in the exciting world of AI, and I've noticed something intriguing unfolding across the planet.

KPMG just dropped its 2025 Global CEO Outlook, surveying over 1,350 leaders running companies with more than $500 million in revenue.

The results are a masterclass in contradiction.

On one hand, these leaders are more nervous about the economy than they've been in five years.

Confidence is down. Uncertainty is up.

On the other hand, 71% of them say AI is their number one investment priority. They're planning to pour 10-20% of their entire budgets into it over the next 12 months.

Think about that for a second.

At the very moment they feel the most uncertain about the future, they are making significant, aggressive bets on a technology that is notoriously hard to implement, and I'm not sure these bets can be justified.

Why?

It's not optimism. It's not hype.

It's strategic fear.

I don’t care whether you're managing a $50K startup or a $50M company, understanding this paradox is your secret to making smarter decisions about AI in your business.

It’s all about understanding what’s truly going on so you can navigate the world of AI confidently and successfully, no matter how big or small!

🚨 The Fear You Can't Afford to Ignore

These leaders aren't investing in AI just because they're confident it will succeed.

They're investing because they are terrified of what happens if they don't.

They envision a future where their competitors become more efficient, the market evolves, and they might get left behind, overwhelmed by their own outdated processes.

They're not chasing a shiny object. They're buying insurance against irrelevance.

Most organizations are feeling the pressure, with 70% worried about the fierce competition for top AI talent.

Over three-quarters, 77%, are finding it challenging to upskill their current teams, and 75% are concerned about how tough it is to integrate AI into their existing operations smoothly.

Translated from corporate-speak: "We know this is going to be hard, expensive, and messy. But sitting on the sidelines is a death sentence."

This isn't a billion-dollar company problem. This is every company's problem from startup to top players.

The scale may differ, but the core question remains the same: How can you invest wisely while the playbook is still being written in real-time?

🎯 Three Questions You Can't Delegate

After working with several clients through this exact dilemma, I've learned that the ones who succeed all get real clear on three questions before they spend a single dollar.

And they don't delegate this thinking—they own it.

✅ #1: Do I Have a Specific, Painful Problem?

"Our customer service could be better" is not a problem. It's a wish.

"We spend $8,000 a month on support, our average response time is six hours, and 70% of our tickets are the same ten questions over and over"—that is a problem.

It's specific. It's measurable. You can calculate the ROI of solving it.

According to McKinsey research from 2024, companies that define specific, measurable problems before implementing AI are 3.5x more likely to see positive ROI within the first year.

The pattern here is quite simple: when problems are vague, our solutions tend to be vague too.

But when problems are clear and specific, we can achieve real, measurable wins. It’s all about clarity and focus!

✅ #2: Can I Afford to Be Wrong?

Here's the reality check: Your first AI experiment will probably fail. Or at least, it won't deliver the results you hoped for.

So the real question is: Can you afford to lose your bet?

If you're a bootstrapped founder with $50,000, a failed $5,000 experiment is 10% of your runway, which is risky.

But with $3M revenue and healthy profits, spending $5,000 to test a $100,000 problem is smart.

The CEOs in the KPMG survey aren't risking the company; they're making small, calculated bets with money they can afford to lose for the sake of learning.

What about you?

✅ #3: Who Is Going to Do the Work?

This is the silent killer of most AI projects.

You can have the perfect problem and the right budget, but AI tools don't implement themselves. Someone has to own it.

And here's the reality for most growing businesses: Your team is already at 110% capacity.

Just dropping a new tool on their plate and saying "make it work" is a recipe for failure.

The technology isn't the bottleneck. The bandwidth is.

🚀 AltLevel™ AI Power Prompt:

Copy this prompt into ChatGPT or favorite tool to see if you're actually ready to invest in AI:

What this does: It forces you to confront the three critical questions before you waste money on AI tools you're not ready for.

If you can't answer all three clearly, your job isn't to buy AI—it's to get those answers.

⚡ Your Next Step

Run that Power Prompt. Get totally honest with yourself.

If you have clear answers to all three questions, you might be ready to invest.

If not, you just saved yourself from wasting $5K-$50K+ on a failed AI experiment.

Because the companies that win in this next chapter won't be the ones that invested the most or the earliest.

They'll be the ones who learned the fastest.

📊 Quick Poll:

🎬 That's A Wrap

Here's what we covered this week:

The Delima: Top CEOs are more nervous about the economy than they've been in 5 years, yet 71% say AI is their #1 investment priority.

Why? Strategic fear is driving the game!

The Insight: They're unsure if AI will succeed. They're confident in their ability to adapt. They're purchasing insurance against becoming irrelevant.

The Framework: Before you invest in AI, answer three questions:

1. Do I have a specific, measurable problem worth at least $ K per year?

2. Can I afford to lose 10% of that on a 90-day experiment?

3. Who on my team will own this from start to finish?

Your Action: Run the 3-Question Readiness Test. If you can't answer all three clearly, fix that first before buying any AI tools.

The Bottom Line: The companies that win won't be the ones that invested the most or earliest. They'll be the ones who learned the fastest.

Until next week, “Think Big, Play Smart, Win More!”

-Coach Will, Strategic Architect

P.S. Are you building a learning engine, or are you just waiting to be told what to do? In times of uncertainty, speed of learning is your only sustainable advantage.

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