Fixing Credibility with Debbie Jenkins

(And using AI to write your book won't help)

In this episode of Speech Bubbles, host Charlotte Otter is joined by Debbie Jenkins - founder, publisher, author, marketing strategist, Stevie Award winner, and self-described horse tickler and wine enthusiast. Jenkins has written 18 books under her own name (plus ghostwritten others) and has been mentoring authors since 2004. Her company Intellectual Perspective Press is one of many businesses she runs.

Debbie's central message around AI and publishing is clear: Faster isn’t better, it’s just faster.

Charlotte and Debbie explore what AI is doing to publishing, leadership, and credibility and why the biggest risk isn’t speed, but reputation. Debbie says that when authors outsource their words to AI, they risk creating work they can’t defend over time. If someone can’t stand behind what they publish in 10 years, they may be building a trust liability rather than a lasting asset.

The conversation also celebrates the messy creative process: nonlinear thinking, detours, doubt, and effort. She describes this as ideas being forged in fire - where the struggle is not a bug, but the source of authenticity, depth, and value.

Debbie shares insights from her award-winning book Stop the Credibility Crisis, which introduces a practical framework: credibility sits at the intersection of trust and desirability. In a world where AI can fake both, she encourages genuine experts and leaders to take control of their trust and desirability clues.

To get better leaders, we must become better followers, says Debbie. The onus is on us to be more discerning about who we elevate in an age of manufactured personas. Follow Debbie on LinkedIn · More about Debbie · Find Debbie's books · · Follow Charlotte on LinkedIn · Subscribe to Speech Bubbles the newsletter · Link to buy We Need New Leaders