Family, Founders, and AI: Building Resilient Teams

LinkedIn Post: Family, Founders, and AI—Building Resilient Teams

What if your newest team member is the one who changes everything?

In Yellowstone, I watched my four kids tackle the wild in their own ways.

One led the charge up the trail, pushing us to walk faster and go farther than we planned.

One stopped to notice the tiniest details— an elk calf darting across the path.

One kept us laughing with perfectly timed jokes when the hike got tough and spirits dipped.

And one shared little-known animal facts, rattling off trivia from nature shows that made us see the park with new eyes.

Each brought something different.

Together, we made it through challenges none of us could have handled alone.

That lesson stuck with me as a founder.

At Langua, when we hired our most junior engineer fresh out of college, we had no idea they'd hit the ground running.

But one thing stood out from the start: high agency.

In my experience, that's the strongest signal for success at a startup.

Their perspective is nothing like mine, and that's exactly why they've become one of our top product innovators.

With the right AI tools, their impact on Langua has been nothing short of a 10x leap in both quality and speed.

At Google, I learned to look for the quiet strengths—the team members who don't always speak up, the ones who see things others miss.

My job was to put them in positions where their creativity could shine.

AI is making that easier than ever.

It surfaces hidden patterns in code, highlights overlooked contributions, and helps me build teams that aren't just high-performing, but resilient and adaptable—like a family in the wild.

How are you using AI to build stronger, more resilient teams?

Originally posted on LinkedIn on June 4, 2025