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Hi, and welcome to Try AI For Growth, a baby podcast out of Make Space for Growth. Here, I share short and maybe surprising stories of how I’ve used technology to tackle everyday challenges – at home, at work, in business. I’m your host, Sara Vicente Barreto, and today, I want to tell you about how AI helped me guide my 11-year-old daughter through her very first attempt at wakeboarding—something I knew absolutely nothing about.
Now, if you’re wondering what wakeboarding and AI have to do with each other, stick with me. This episode isn’t just about getting up on a board—it’s about how you can use technology to learn, explore, and even involve your kids in ways that are creative and practical. For me, it started with wanting to find a way to teach her, even when I didn’t have the answers myself.
The Problem to Solve
Here’s the backstory. We were in Lake Alqueva, down in Alentejo, and for some reason this year, my husband and my daughter had started toying with the idea of using the small boat to try wakeboarding. I was a bit uncertain about the whole thing, partly because I don’t know how, partly because they can get pretty feisty with each other when they are doing something new and partly well, because it is my job to worry. However, I have also knew I did want to let fear get in the way.
My daughter had never been on a wakeboard before. It was her first time, and we were all learning as we went. My son went around excited from the back of the boat to the front of the boat. My husband, who’s wakeboarded before, was the one driving the boat. So I was the one in the back, with no idea what to look for, but charged with checking how I could help her get up on the board. To add to it, the wind was particularly high that day, but she was insistent she wanted to give it a go.
Part for fun and part for reassurance, I thought
“What if I ask ChatGPT?”
The Prompt
It started with a simple question: “How can a child stand up on a wakeboard?” AI gave me some basic advice: lean back, keep your knees bent, and let the boat pull you. But it felt too vague to actually apply to what we were seeing. Rule #1 of any AI interaction – you don’t have to stay with your first answer!
So, I refined my question. I asked, “How can an 11-year-old stand up on a wakeboard for the first time in windy conditions?” This time, the suggestions got better—tips about timing, keeping her arms straight, focusing on her knees, and even adjusting the boat’s speed. Rule #2 – use good prompts with as much detail as possible!
As I was using the voice version, my daughter was attentively listening as well, so I asked her to follow up with any clarifying questions. She asked something so simple, yet so insightful: “Why does it feel so hard to keep my balance when it’s windy?”. Her question led to advice we hadn’t even thought about, like how the wind and waves might make her lean too far forward or back, and how she could focus on her body position to counteract that. She was also nervous about speed as we had differing view in the boat about taking off full speed or being more progressive. With the help of AI, we found a few alternative ways we could try out and how she could get more comfortable with speed over time. We also found out about the difference between surfing aligned with the boat and on the sides of the boat, crossing the waves between the two. She was excited. Rule #3 – involve your team when collaborating with AI
With a few more follow ups about the best body positioning and what I should watch out for, we felt ready to start. For the first few times, she still could not stand up. I stood in the boat, watching her, and tried to figure out what was still going wrong. Was she leaning back enough? Were her knees too stiff? Every time she tried to stand up, we applied a new tip.
We also learned that it wasn’t just about what she was doing—it was also about timing with the boat’s acceleration. Once we slowed things down and she focused on letting the boat pull her instead of trying to stand too fast, she got much closer.
By the end of the day, she stood up on the board! It wasn’t perfect, but the joy on her face was incredible. And the best part? She felt like she’d figured it out with a mix of teamwork and technology. I was happy she could see me willing to learn in a subject I know nothing about, and using the latest and greatest ChatGPT to do it.
The Lessons
Now, I have been babbling some rules along the way. So let me share a few of my own lessons using AI that can help you get going in a more effective manner. Whether you’re trying it for wakeboarding tips or something else entirely, here are three things to keep in mind:
- The Secret is in the Prompt
How you ask the question matters. Be clear, specific, and add as much context as possible. For example, asking “How can an 11-year-old wakeboard for the first time in windy conditions?” got me much more useful advice than just “How to wakeboard?” - Don’t Stop at the First Answer
The first response AI gives you might be generic or incomplete. Refine your question, ask follow-ups, and keep experimenting. It’s a process of trial and error. Don’t get frustrated if your first answer does not tell you very much - Use it Collaboratively, Have Fun and Stay Curious
AI isn’t just a tool—it’s a partner in exploration. Involving my daughter in the process, letting her ask questions, and turning it into a collaborative learning experience made it even more fun. AI can be scary for those around you or sometimes it can be second nature for them and scary for you. Approach it as a team. - Think Critically About the Advice
AI doesn’t always get it perfectly right. Cross-check advice against your own observations and be ready to adapt it to your unique situation. Ask cross-checking questions when in doubt.
These principles are simple but make all the difference when you’re experimenting with AI in everyday life. But if you only want one rule to sum it all. Try it out. That is the best way to start.
This experience reminded me that AI doesn’t just give answers—it helps you ask better questions. It’s not about replacing humans but adding especially when you’re navigating something completely new. Involving my daughter in the process made it even more rewarding. She saw how technology could help her solve real-world problems and felt empowered to experiment, even when things didn’t go perfectly at first. You could argue I could have just asked my husband, but let’s face it – explaining things concisely is not his strongest feature. Moreover, using AI gave her a way to get “third party information”, which as a pre-teen she is valuing more and more.
If you’re wondering how you could try something like this, try engaging with ChatGPT or any other GenAI you prefer to give you instructions for a new skill, brainstorm creative ideas or DIY projects or encourage your kids to ask it questions. The possibilities are endless—and they don’t have to be serious or work-related. Sometimes, the most surprising discoveries happen when you’re just having fun.
Before I sign off, I want to share one more thing: the creation of this very episode is an experiment in itself. I didn’t just use AI to teach my daughter wakeboarding—I also used it to learn how I could best edit a podcast on my own, brainstorm ideas for the first episode, sort through the most interesting stories we’ve worked on, and even draft a first draft of the script. That’s the exciting part about it: AI isn’t just a tool; it’s a collaborator.
Thanks for joining me on this first episode of Try AI for Growth. If you’ve ever used AI in a fun or surprising way, I’d love to hear about it. And if you try wakeboarding—or any other AI experiment—let me know how it goes! Until next time, keep experimenting and keep having fun.