All It Takes Is A Goal ATG 266: The Algorithm Is Retraining Your Mind (And Why You Can't Win as a Leader)
Jan 26, 2026
Carey Nieuwhof, leadership author and podcaster who writes about change and growth, explores how phone-driven algorithms fragment audiences. He discusses why leaders can no longer please everyone. Short takes include social media’s fake intimacy, retraining attention to read deeply, pursuing mastery in later decades, and building real relationships without skipping intimacy levels.
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Algorithms Are Fragmenting Shared Reality
- Algorithms create 100 different experiences in a room of 100 people by training attention and beliefs.
- That fragmentation makes unified leadership responses nearly impossible.
Deep Work Will Become A Scarce Superpower
- Short attention culture pushed Carey to reteach himself how to read and choose deep work deliberately.
- He predicts deep thinking will become a scarce, valuable skill amid AI-driven content noise.
Lunch With A Mentor Came Years Later
- Carey described meeting Craig Groeschel for lunch early in his career and not following up, then reconnecting years later after blogging.
- The story shows relationships and influence often take decades, not single moments.
