ABOUT THIS CONVERSATION
Watch the Digital Compass interview
In this Digital Compass interview, I sat down with Emmy Award–winning broadcaster Kate Delaney on Author’s Cornerto talk about the idea behind my latest book — and the bigger question underneath it: how do we stay human as the world speeds up?
After more than 20 years in enterprise technology, cloud, and AI, I’ve become convinced the hardest problem of this era isn’t keeping up with the tools. It’s remembering where we’re actually trying to go. Or, as I put it in the book: speed without direction is just noise.
What we covered
Kate and I get into the moment that started it all — a 5 a.m. cup of coffee and the question “who’s driving my day?” From there we talk about what AI can and can’t replace, and why the answer isn’t to fear the technology but to protect the human parts it will never own: trust, presence, judgment, and real mentorship. We dig into why AI exposes a shaky culture instead of fixing it, why a human has to stay in every loop, and the two-minute morning habit that keeps me grounded before the notifications take over.
The bigger idea
More than a book, The Digital Compass is part of a movement I care deeply about: how to be human again in a digital world. Real conversations, real trust, and relationships that can’t be built over a text or a video call.
If you’ve ever felt busy but unsure you’re actually going anywhere, this conversation is for you. Watch the full episode above, and explore The Digital Compass and my other books at michaelearls.com.