AI is not a replacement for a personality.

People here on LinkedIn are starting to sound eerily familiar. In fact. It could be the case that people…real people, are not here at all.

AI has allowed us to produce content at a rate of knots that would not have been possible 5 years ago. And it seems like everybody has jumped on board. I saw a LinkedIn post the other day. It was telling a story, obviously written by AI. Em dashes everywhere. Phrases like ‘the truth of it is’ and ‘in today’s fast paced world’. There was nothing wrong with the story it told, but it wasn’t a human telling it.

The first comment underneath put the final nail in the coffin. It praised the story, while repeating the main points and finished off with an ‘in conclusion’

AI talking to AI. Does anyone else feel like we could end up in a never ending circle. It reminds me of the time I set an automatic email to tell people I was on leave, only to return to hundreds of emails. An email from a no reply address to me, my automated response back, it telling me that it wasn’t a monitored mailbox, my response back, it telling me…. You get it.

Who really benefits from a LinkedIn full of AI slop? Not me, and I doubt you.

I am a huge fan of AI. It has already transformed what I as a financial adviser can accomplish. I believe it has increased my client capacity by at least 30% (Possibly moving towards 50%). And we are just at the beginning of this revolution. But with any new tool, comes Tools. People who see an easy out for themselves. A way that they too can do things they never could before, without thinking about if they even should. In many cases the answer is no. 

I’m not one to preach though, I too have been a Tool, instead of using the tool. Some of my earlier writing was indeed far too reliant on AI. I started seeing in my own output the things that irked me in others. So I stopped. Does it take more time to write an article now, yes, but not so much that it matters. I don’t want to publish AI slop. So, for anyone who cares or wants to run this article through their LLM to ‘write’ a response and give the perfect comment, you do you. 

Here’s a list of my suggestions for anyone tempted into the world of AI.

 Do learn how to use AI

 Don’t assume you can learn it in one night.

 Do use AI to brainstorm ideas, go back and forth with you to help you perfect the message you want

to deliver.

 Don’t throw a subject in chat and tell it to write you a post.

 Do use AI to learn, improve, perfect your content, brand  or whatever it is you are looking for.

 Don’t hand control over to the machine.

 Do use the tool,

 Don’t be a Tool.

AI is exciting. There are so many ways to deploy this technology in our lives. 

Here is what I use.

MY AI TOOL STACK (All paid versions)

ChatGPT = THINKING PARTNER

I use ChatGPT for:

• Business strategy • Brainstorming • Research • Problem solving • Decision making • Building frameworks • Testing ideas • Planning projects • Data analysis • Developing presentations • Creating visual concepts

It helps me think through complex problems, explore different options and challenge my assumptions.

Claude = WRITING ASSISTANT

I do the writing. The ideas, opinions, stories, experiences and final message are mine.

I use Claude to help me:

• Organise rough thoughts • Improve structure and flow • Edit drafts • Tighten language • Identify weak arguments • Make complex ideas easier to understand • Maintain consistency of tone and voice

It is an editor, sounding board and writing assistant. It is not the author. 

It does not rewrite my work.

Microsoft Copilot = SECURE WORK ASSISTANT

I use Microsoft Copilot for work that sits inside the Microsoft 365 environment, particularly when privacy and security matter.

Typical uses include:

• Meeting notes • Email drafting and summaries • Calendar management • Word documents • Excel analysis • Teams meetings • Internal documents • Workflow automation • Secure handling of business information

For confidential or client-related information, this is the environment I use.

Canva = DESIGN TOOL

I use Canva for:

• Social media graphics • Presentations • Marketing material • Diagrams • Branded documents • Visual content

MY SIMPLE RULE

ChatGPT helps me think.

Claude helps me improve my writing.

Copilot helps me work securely.

Canva helps me design.

I remain responsible for the ideas, the judgment, the writing and the final result.

I have also implemented a business wide AI policy for my practice, Smart Happy Money, because AI needs guardrails. It is also hard to ignore the environmental impact of AI. Our internal policy states that this should be offset wherever possible. It also asks for no unnecessary usage. Because every prompt, every image every time, takes a little more power and water.

If offsetting AI sounds good to you, here’s the group I’ve found and they look pretty good.

www.greenfleet.com.au

So where do we go from here in the wild west world of AI.

2 important things.

1: I’ll say it one more time, use the tool, don’t be a Tool

2: Don’t let AI become your personality. You have one already and chances are it’s pretty good. Be

you. Be human.

Go well.

Ben G-N

Ben Graham-Nellor is a financial adviser and founder of Smart Happy Money, based in Melbourne. He writes about building a more human, more inclusive financial advice industry.