Growth Sold Separately

I built an AI team to help me make a podcast. Then I heard the episode and wanted to start again.

The research was interesting. The script had been fact-checked. There was even a model of my voice reading it. But it didn't feel like me. Was AI helping me find the story—or helping me keep improving a version I didn't actually want?

For the first episode of Growth Sold Separately, I follow that question through classrooms, an MIT essay-writing study, and experiments in creative work. Better results with a tool, what we can do without it, and whether we like what we've made turn out to be different questions. Making this episode put me right in the middle of them.

I'm Tony Lee. This is a story about the work I wanted to hand off, the decisions I wanted to keep, and the version I finally wanted you to hear.

CHAPTERS
00:00 The monster is pointing at me
02:09 Close the laptop
05:38 What MIT measured
10:01 Make it sound like me
13:03 Another version
16:24 Good by whose measure?
18:28 The missing Tony
21:58 What I want to keep

PRODUCTION
This episode combines my own recordings with AI-generated narration using a model of my voice. I developed the script with AI, reviewed the research and approved the finished episode. Instrumental music was generated with ElevenLabs.

SOURCES AND FURTHER READING
The studies below examine particular tasks and settings. They do not establish whether making this podcast made me smarter or dumber.

Bastani et al. (2025), Generative AI without guardrails can harm learning. Mathematics practice and the exam without AI:
Source

Kosmyna et al. (2025), Your Brain on ChatGPT. Essay-writing, EEG and recall; a preprint, not an intelligence test:
Source

Kestin et al. (2025), AI tutoring outperforms in-class active learning. Physics tutoring and immediate assessments:
Source

Thoeni and Fryer (2026), AI Chatbots in Higher Education. Why twelve weeks of availability is not twelve weeks of use:
Source

Hou et al. (2025), The Double-Edged Roles of Generative AI in the Creative Process. Help at different stages of design:
Source

Wadinambiarachchi et al. (2024), The Effects of Generative AI on Design Fixation and Divergent Thinking. The chatbot-avatar experiment:
Source

Doshi and Hauser (2024), Generative AI enhances individual creativity but reduces the collective diversity of novel content. Creative ratings and similarity in short fiction:
Source

Baird et al. (2012), Inspired by Distraction. Returning to previously encountered creative problems after a break:
Source

Later counterevidence: Murray et al. challenged the proposed mind-wandering benefit. The explanation remains unsettled:
Source

Coverage discussed in the episode:
Rael Hornby, Laptop Mag (July 2025):
Source
Erik Ofgang, Tech & Learning (July 2025):
Source

Questions or a source I should examine? Leave a comment on the episode.

Well, I'm back! Haha. Nothing life threatening or any health issues that prevented me from this. Thought I'd share not only what has been going on since, I'd assume, about a year ago. TL;DR, I fell in love; changed jobs; traveled to Korea and Hong Kong; and realized a couple interesting things about myself. Oh, and I was on my favorite podcast of all time, bamboo & glass! Thank you to both Da Eun and Sophia for letting us tell our story. (Us? Yeah you're going to have to tune into episode 137.. hehe) 

But, meanwhile, I am back. And it feels so good!

Ogo's life story was fascinating in college, but it's even more impactful post Bonnies career. I got to cover him in college, but importantly built a friendship and followed his journey. If his story of overcoming adversity doesn't get you up this morning, not sure what will. Humbled to have another St. Bonaventure University alum on sheckiiville! As always, text me at (213) 214-0970. Would love to chat about this episode with y'all :) 

Some people claim to be real, and some are Minji Chang. The actor, producer, ‘First Of All’ podcast host came on sheckiiville to not only talk about her journey in Hollywood, but much needed discussion about racism and sexism. Just to get you prepared, the word “should” is a main theme of our chat. Can’t wait for y’all to meet Minji on sheckiiville today on day 3 of 7 on my birthday week. Text me at (213) 214-0970 if you want to chat about this personally :) And yes, that is my actual number.

Imagine first stepping into a prospective employer and have the head of HR go, “Where my boy sheckii at?!” That’s how Jay Salim and I met in NYC, and since then I’ve kept in touch with now the EVP of People and Culture at Complex Networks. Jay shared his story about coming back after serving in the military and how that has shaped his career. He shares a story about how he got into the advertising industry after being a doorman and doing multiple hustles to get the right experience. My man dropped some serious knowledge on the second episode during my birthday week, and I’m glad y’all get to know the amazing guy Jay is on sheckiiville. Text me at (213) 214-0970 if you want to chat about this personally! (Not a joke this is really my number.)

Excited to have Andy Lam kick off the birthday week with episode 009! Andy is an Amazon FBA Entrepreneur, and no that's not drop shipping. See how he created a 7-figure business from doing something that many people will want to get started on, but more importantly hear the journey that took him here and how he managed continuing to grow. If you want to chat about this, text me at (213) 214-0970.

Jess was the first person I ever did a documentary on. But more importantly, I wanted to have her on as the first St. Bonaventure alumni on this podcast (Go Bonnies!) because her work ethic and perspective as an assistant basketball coach at Providence is great to hear for everyone. We also talked about Kobe Bryant and the legacy he left. Can’t wait for y’all to hear this! If you wanna chat about it, text me at (213) 214-0970.

William Hung of American Idol fame (yes, the one who did "She Bangs!") dropped by sheckiville on this episode to chat about what he has been up to. The lasting memory for this episode is the vision he chatted about, when he had the inspiration to do more -- and he did. As a motivational speaker and coach, he has expanded his reach and started to help others out in a meaningful way. Oh, and we talked about bullying and other things in there as well. Hope you enjoy the episode! 

Adam was crucial for me when I started my career as a young pup in New York City. He helped me a lot on branding to the agencies, as well as get my s*** together in terms of realistic job market and opportunities. He got me in the doors of a few good places, all that I bombed by the way, and I can't thank him enough for that. 

Fast forward a few years, I saw him doing ThePOZcast consistently on LinkedIn and seeing the guests he had on. He, along with a slew of other people, kickstarted my podcasting and live streaming career. Adam also is the Founder and Managing Director at NHP Talent Group and said a lot of interesting things around employers and job markets. Humbled for his time, and hope you enjoyed the fire he brought to this podcast today!

----

Adam Posner is the Founder and Managing Director at NHP Talent Group- a boutique NY-based staffing firm, specializing in talent acquisition for Senior-level roles within: Digital Marketing, Media, Product and Content Creation at Start-ups, Creative Agencies and Brands. He is also the host of the popular podcast,  ThePOZcast- showcasing experts to help you harness your inner tenacity to drive your life and career forward.

Prior to pivoting into the world of recruiting, Adam spent 15 years working within the NYC advertising and marketing industry. He has led account management and digital strategy at American Express, SIRIUS XM and digital ad agencies in NYC like VaynerMedia and EP+Co for major Clients like Verizon, Pepsi and British Airways. This has instilled him with a unique perspective when working with candidates to truly understand their Career DNA and ensure a good fit on both sides of the recruiting equation. In addition, he brings expert advisory around the Talent Acquisition process, employer branding and recruitment operations.

He has built a strong reputation by always putting relationships first, while balancing his Clients business needs and Candidates career goals. Adam is truly a power connector. He identifies opportunities, synergies and connects the dots.

Geoff and I met through a recruiter and even worked together briefly at an advertising agency. Incredible mind in the social media and digital marketing space, which is even more embellished by him being the CEO of We Are Social Media (WeRSM). Conversations today included things about is this peak social media content or not -- because during the pandemic, he brought some interesting points about what brands should be doing more of or less of. Can't wait for y'all to hear what Geoff brought to the podcast! 

----

We are Social Media is one of the world’s leading independent sources of digital marketing news and insight, covering social media marketing, the connected lifestyle, and a lot in between. Over the years, we’ve become a valuable resource that thousands of top agency and brand professionals trust to stay up-to-date on a daily basis.

We Are Social Media is incorporated in New York, USA and has local presence in Athens, Greece and Central London, UK.