Laid Off After 24 Years. Here's What She Built. | The AI Sisterhood Podcast | Ep. 1 Ft. Deb Haas

With Deb Haas | | 95 min

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Episode summary

This episode centers on Deb Haas’s move from a long corporate HR career into building her own path after a layoff. The conversation, as described, focuses on how women in mid-career can use AI as a practical career tool, rebuild work on their own terms, and approach technology with confidence rather than intimidation. It also highlights the mindset shifts that come with entrepreneurship, including emotion management, energy-led choices, and learning to speak to AI more directly. Alongside her professional reinvention, the episode points to Deb’s broader background as an AI educator and her unusual path from opera singing to teaching women 40+ how to work with AI.

Meet the guest

Deb Haas

Deb Haas is officially titled Head of Human-AI Shenanigans and says her mission is to teach women 40+ to make AI their most powerful career tool. The description also notes her background in corporate HR and that she trained professionals across three continents.

What this episode explores

  • The episode frames AI as a practical language tool rather than a purely technical one.
  • Deb’s layoff became a turning point that led to building a new career path.
  • A community can grow out of shared career disruption and reinvention.
  • The conversation emphasizes mindset, not just tools, money, or tactics.
  • The episode connects midlife experience with confidence in AI use.

Jump to a chapter

  1. 0:00 Welcome to the AI Sisterhood Podcast 🎙️
  2. 1:18 The 22% problem : why this podcast exists
  3. 2:30 Meet Deb Haas: Head of Human AI Shenanigans
  4. 3:30 Laid off after 24 years: the Accenture story
  5. 7:20 "It's not a tech tool. It's a language tool."
  6. 9:20 How she turned 20,000 layoffs into a community
  7. 12:50 The hinky meter: why midlife women crush it at AI
  8. 14:15 Joy Prompt Club : why joy beats productivity
  9. 23:05 She rebuilt her landing page in 30 mins with Claude Code
  10. 25:10 The boss mindset: stop being polite to your AI
  11. 29:30 ADHD diagnosis at 55 : the revelation that changed everything
  12. 34:25 What she wishes she knew before starting a business
  13. 37:55 Follow your energy, not your passion
  14. 42:20 How AI transformed the way she reads and writes
  15. 50:15 The hardest part of entrepreneurship: managing your emotions
  16. 57:35 It's not about tools or money : it's all mindset
  17. 67:25 From opera singer to AI educator: the full origin story
  18. 78:50 Deb's 5 mindsets for life and business
  19. 89:50 "Every decision I ever made was out of fear"
  20. 93:05 The darkest moment : and what came after
  21. 94:05 Outro: you heard how she built it. Now go build yours ✨
Read the original episode description

Meet Deb Haas ( @JoyPromptClub ) : officially titled "Head of Human-AI Shenanigans" and the woman on a mission to teach women 40+ to make AI their most powerful career tool. - 25+ years in corporate HR. - Trained 500+ professionals across 3 continents. Then built something entirely her own. Oh : and she sings opera. 🎭 Deb joins me live for Episode 1 of The AI Sisterhood Podcast. We're talking about AI for mid-career women, what it really means to rebuild your career on your own terms, and why the most powerful AI users aren't always the ones you'd expect. Reach out to Deb via LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/debhaasai/ Subscribe to her Newsletter (Mostly Human) - https://mostlyhuman.beehiiv.com/ 0:00 Welcome to the AI Sisterhood Podcast 🎙️ 1:18 The 22% problem : why this podcast exists 2:30 Meet Deb Haas: Head of Human AI Shenanigans 3:30 Laid off after 24 years: the Accenture story 7:20 "It's not a tech tool. It's a language tool." 9:20 How she turned 20,000 layoffs into a community 12:50 The hinky meter: why midlife women crush it at AI 14:15 Joy Prompt Club : why joy beats productivity 23:05 She rebuilt her landing page in 30 mins with Claude Code 25:10 The boss mindset: stop being polite to your AI 29:30 ADHD diagnosis at 55 : the revelation that changed everything 34:25 What she wishes she knew before starting a business 37:55 Follow your energy, not your passion 42:20 How AI transformed the way she reads and writes 50:15 The hardest part of entrepreneurship: managing your emotions 57:35 It's not about tools or money : it's all mindset 67:25 From opera singer to AI educator: the full origin story 78:50 Deb's 5 mindsets for life and business 89:50 "Every decision I ever made was out of fear" 93:05 The darkest moment : and what came after 94:05 Outro: you heard how she built it. Now go build yours ✨ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ The AI Sisterhood Podcast is the show where women building the future of AI share how they actually do it. Hear how they built it. Then go build yours. Every week, host Arthi Rajendran sits down with a woman who is in the arena : shipping ML models, founding AI companies, and doing the hard technical work that rarely gets talked about publicly. No hype. No theory. Just real builders having honest conversations about real systems. We go deep on: → How they actually built what they built → The technical decisions behind real AI systems → Career journeys into AI : the unpolished, honest version → What it takes to build as a woman in a male-dominated space → Where AI is going, from the people actively shaping it Because the AI conversation online is overwhelmingly male, but the women building in this space are extraordinary. This podcast exists to make them visible and to give every listener the fuel to go build something of their own. New episode every Saturday. 🎙️ WANT TO BE A GUEST? Are you a woman building real AI systems? We want to hear your story. Fill out our guest interest form → https://forms.gle/NMRrmjgkz3GSHGiK7 🤝 SPONSOR THE AI SISTERHOOD PODCAST Reach a community of women AI builders, developers, founders, and professionals actively building with AI. To explore partnership opportunities, reach out at → arthirajendran@thearthiaicollective.com 🔔 Subscribe + hit the bell so you never miss a Saturday drop 💬 Leave a comment : Arthi reads every single one & responds 📤 Share this episode with a woman in AI who deserves to be seen 📍 Get in touch: 🌐 Website → https://thearthiaicollective.com/ 📸 Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/thearthiaicollective/ 💼 LinkedIn → https://linkedin.com/in/arthirajendran The AI Sisterhood Podcast is part of @thearthiaicollective : a product and community ecosystem dedicated to making AI accessible, buildable, and human.

Show notes are based on the published YouTube episode description. Watch the full conversation for context.

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