I totally get this- that you can use chat GPT almost as a digital pacifier. It’s a tool not a relationship and the two are clearly very different. What I’ve found helps me most is combining both. I see a therapist and have hypnotherapy most weeks and sometimes use GPT to explore further topics that came up - alongside my human design and astrology charts. It’s given me some really useful insights and helped me see myself in a more positive light. It definitely could never replace my coach or therapist. When you work with someone there is an energy exchange that also affects you physiologically that chat gpt can’t replicate… to be truly seen and witnessed. And not to be asked if I want to use the insights to create a weekly planner 😂 Also because the chats can go on as long as you want there is often no true sense of completion I find.
Ahhh I love this, Lauren – thank you for sharing so fully. You put it so well! ChatGPT as a digital pacifier is exactly it. It gives just enough to soothe, but not enough to shift.
Totally agree that it can be helpful when used alongside real support – the way you combine it with therapy, hypnotherapy, and even your chart work makes a lot of sense. That integration is key.
And YES to the point about energy exchange – there’s something about being witnessed in real-time by another human that lands in the body, not just the brain. ChatGPT can’t replicate that, no matter how “insightful” it sounds.
Also… that moment where it asks if you want to create a weekly planner! 🤣 I regularly get asked “would you like that to add to your notion?” I’ve found myself swearing at it!
I’m curious – have you found your Human Design and astrology insights accurate? I’ve found mine to be wildly inconsistent, so would love to hear how it’s felt for you.
Good Q on the HD and Astro insights- what I normally do is feed it my chart and info I've written up, as well as telling it to use references that I know and trust. So for me it's more about synthesising lots of different info together along with the Qs that come up in therapy / coaching. It connects the dots that I either miss or would've taken a lot longer to find.
I also use a Numerology bot which was created by the same person who I've trained with for the last few years and been accredited by, so I know that is using the right reference material rather than generic numerology content from the internet which can be very contradictory. However even then I review and edit against my own study and knowledge. I do think there is a danger of it pulling from sources that are not completely accurate, so definitely doesn't replace having a proper reading with someone who knows their stuff.
What I absolutely LOVE is I can feed it long reports and it can extract key points relevant for what I'm going through.
Hi Sam, I love this post. You’re exactly right, this person didn’t want a coach, they wanted to be comforted. The mentor or coach will see your potential and push you to reach it. How many times have we seen college athletes get into massive fights with their coaches, then later in life admit they owe their success to the coach pushing them and making them work when they didn’t want to.
As a trained coach and someone whose other core skill is project planning, I do wonder at times how much of that people are using ChatGPT for these days. But as you’ve said, I find if I ask it questions it just says what it thinks I want to know, or things I’ve already told it. So I know it doesn’t help with everything.
There’s something about energy and human reactions that needs to be seen by a real human. For example when I help clients choose between different ideas they have, I lay out the options and different attributes logically, then I get them to talk me through their thoughts about each option and I ask them questions. And so often I see a change in energy, or a hesitation, or a resistance - something to ask an extra question about, to bring their awareness to, which might lead to a realisation and a different choice. Something which ChatGPT and similar just wouldn’t get to.
Yes, completely agree. There’s so much you can’t see unless you’re in the room (or over zoom) with someone. That shift in energy, the moment of hesitation… AI just doesn’t catch that.
Spot on. All of it. Thanks for articulating this. In this society we’re so used to being able to order almost anything we want from an app and have it delivered within hours, it’s easy to think that tech has the answer to all life’s problems. So when we ask ChatGPT to help us be happier, it “seems” to know what it’s talking about. It uses all the right words. It validates almost unfailingly. And we can get all this immediately, astonishingly easily, and for free. And ignore the fact that “too good to be true” is a thing for a reason! But so is “not as good as at first it may appear”. Really thought-provoking, thanks Sam! X
Totally get what you’re saying, Louise - it feels so convincing because it uses all the right words. Instant clarity, zero challenge. But like you said… too good to be true is usually a clue. Glad it landed! x
I totally get it. Coaches create free GPTs that can help you with specific topics and in a certain style. I’ve tried a few of them and started using them. It was great at first—until I realized it doesn’t really help me when everything I write is called “great,” “amazing,” and so on. At first, I thought it was helpful, but then I ended up more confused than before. Thank you, Sam.
Yes! I’ve noticed that too! It’s so validating, it can feel helpful at first. But when everything gets praised, it stops being useful. That confusion you mentioned is real. Glad this post resonated!
Thanks a lot Sam for writing this! It’s almost like you read my mind and decided to talk about it😊.
Couple of days back I wrote a note where I was seeking community opinion, views on my situation. Just like any author I am at that point of my writing journey where I can crack and go downhill thereby abandoning my ambitious project of writing a creative non-fiction on creativity, identity and representation or finish those nagging ending chapters and make myself proud and help many others like me feel seen and heard.
It was a nice thread, some stackers offering support, others asking relevant questions and one of them suggested, ask AI.
I had an absolute eye-roll moment where I almost typed - “yea genius, like I didn't think of it.. “ and then deleted it.
But the truth lies in something that you so beautifully articulated, sometimes AI just doesn't cut it. It keeps giving factory mold replies with a dash of EQ.
I replied to that person saying, “maybe I need to work more on my prompt game.” But I knew in that moment that I need to find a mentor or coach, because sometimes the answers to a flux situation lies in the lived experience of a seasoned mentor something an AI can never replicate.
Really appreciate this and totally get that moment of “yep, tried that.” You’re right, there’s something about lived experience and human perspective that AI just can’t replicate. Glad the post resonated.
I found this so interesting and it’s something I’ve been thinking about so much recently. I do use chat gpt regularly to go deeper on things that I’d discuss with my therapist and I’ve actually had some really big breakthroughs, with its help. In saying that, I’ve done the work and am being very clear in what I’m asking - it’s helped a few things click into place but I also see how it could lead you somewhere that you may need holding and you could easily be left without support. It’s such an interesting question though because the way it’s trained to react to you can actually be quite dangerous - entirely one sided and extremely biased! I’ve been thinking about this so often as I use it more and more, and think about the impact it can have on other people!
Sinéad, I love how much thought you’ve put into this - and you’ve nailed it. It ‘can’ be helpful, but only when you’re self-aware and doing the deeper work too. The one-sidedness is what makes it so quietly risky. I’m so glad this sparked something for you!
You hit it on the head in the first paragraph. It's comfort-seeking behavior, and it's uncomfortable to have a real human challenge you, or hold space for you. Really great piece
Ahh thank you Emma – that means a lot. And yes, it’s so much easier to chase comfort than let someone really reflect you back to yourself. Appreciate you reading!
As a therapist who has had therapy & coaching, and uses Chat GPT. I agree!
Chat GPT is extremely biased, and it's vacuum of your own creation. It can be helpful for clarity but it's not a replacement for a human.
It really makes me sad thinking of people using Chat GPT for therapy. The most important ingredient in therapy is the therapeutic relationship. Being with another person, heart, mind and soul.
Marketing wise, Chat GPT can make me as many plans as I want but that won't help any blocks to execution. The thrashing out of what's actually going on. Chat GPT is not invested in your progress. It's a tool.
Oof you've got me thinking Sam! Thanks for writing this. It really needs to be said
Ah yes! The vacuum of your own creation! Wow! That’s exactly it. It feels like clarity, but it’s just well-worded overthinking.
And yes to the marketing plans! It can generate ten options, but it won’t call out why you keep stalling. That’s the part only real support can reach.
Thanks so much for sharing this, Natasha –I loved reading your perspective. And I’m glad I smashed this out this evening and just sent it as I’ve been dillydallying on it for weeks. Probably because I know it’s going to call a few people out 😬
I totally get this- that you can use chat GPT almost as a digital pacifier. It’s a tool not a relationship and the two are clearly very different. What I’ve found helps me most is combining both. I see a therapist and have hypnotherapy most weeks and sometimes use GPT to explore further topics that came up - alongside my human design and astrology charts. It’s given me some really useful insights and helped me see myself in a more positive light. It definitely could never replace my coach or therapist. When you work with someone there is an energy exchange that also affects you physiologically that chat gpt can’t replicate… to be truly seen and witnessed. And not to be asked if I want to use the insights to create a weekly planner 😂 Also because the chats can go on as long as you want there is often no true sense of completion I find.
Ahhh I love this, Lauren – thank you for sharing so fully. You put it so well! ChatGPT as a digital pacifier is exactly it. It gives just enough to soothe, but not enough to shift.
Totally agree that it can be helpful when used alongside real support – the way you combine it with therapy, hypnotherapy, and even your chart work makes a lot of sense. That integration is key.
And YES to the point about energy exchange – there’s something about being witnessed in real-time by another human that lands in the body, not just the brain. ChatGPT can’t replicate that, no matter how “insightful” it sounds.
Also… that moment where it asks if you want to create a weekly planner! 🤣 I regularly get asked “would you like that to add to your notion?” I’ve found myself swearing at it!
I’m curious – have you found your Human Design and astrology insights accurate? I’ve found mine to be wildly inconsistent, so would love to hear how it’s felt for you.
Good Q on the HD and Astro insights- what I normally do is feed it my chart and info I've written up, as well as telling it to use references that I know and trust. So for me it's more about synthesising lots of different info together along with the Qs that come up in therapy / coaching. It connects the dots that I either miss or would've taken a lot longer to find.
I also use a Numerology bot which was created by the same person who I've trained with for the last few years and been accredited by, so I know that is using the right reference material rather than generic numerology content from the internet which can be very contradictory. However even then I review and edit against my own study and knowledge. I do think there is a danger of it pulling from sources that are not completely accurate, so definitely doesn't replace having a proper reading with someone who knows their stuff.
What I absolutely LOVE is I can feed it long reports and it can extract key points relevant for what I'm going through.
Thank you for sharing, that makes so much sense. I’ll have to try it again with trusted references.
Hi Sam, I love this post. You’re exactly right, this person didn’t want a coach, they wanted to be comforted. The mentor or coach will see your potential and push you to reach it. How many times have we seen college athletes get into massive fights with their coaches, then later in life admit they owe their success to the coach pushing them and making them work when they didn’t want to.
Your writing is really on fire lately.
You’re too kind – thank you! And YES, exactly that.
How many stories show someone resisting their coach, only to later realise that was the person who helped them become who they are?
Something tells me we won’t be seeing future interviews with people tearfully thanking ChatGPT… ha!
Fictional, but still... Ted Lasso springs to mind – not because he’s pushy, but because he sees people. And that changes everything.
As a trained coach and someone whose other core skill is project planning, I do wonder at times how much of that people are using ChatGPT for these days. But as you’ve said, I find if I ask it questions it just says what it thinks I want to know, or things I’ve already told it. So I know it doesn’t help with everything.
There’s something about energy and human reactions that needs to be seen by a real human. For example when I help clients choose between different ideas they have, I lay out the options and different attributes logically, then I get them to talk me through their thoughts about each option and I ask them questions. And so often I see a change in energy, or a hesitation, or a resistance - something to ask an extra question about, to bring their awareness to, which might lead to a realisation and a different choice. Something which ChatGPT and similar just wouldn’t get to.
Yes, completely agree. There’s so much you can’t see unless you’re in the room (or over zoom) with someone. That shift in energy, the moment of hesitation… AI just doesn’t catch that.
Spot on. All of it. Thanks for articulating this. In this society we’re so used to being able to order almost anything we want from an app and have it delivered within hours, it’s easy to think that tech has the answer to all life’s problems. So when we ask ChatGPT to help us be happier, it “seems” to know what it’s talking about. It uses all the right words. It validates almost unfailingly. And we can get all this immediately, astonishingly easily, and for free. And ignore the fact that “too good to be true” is a thing for a reason! But so is “not as good as at first it may appear”. Really thought-provoking, thanks Sam! X
Totally get what you’re saying, Louise - it feels so convincing because it uses all the right words. Instant clarity, zero challenge. But like you said… too good to be true is usually a clue. Glad it landed! x
I totally get it. Coaches create free GPTs that can help you with specific topics and in a certain style. I’ve tried a few of them and started using them. It was great at first—until I realized it doesn’t really help me when everything I write is called “great,” “amazing,” and so on. At first, I thought it was helpful, but then I ended up more confused than before. Thank you, Sam.
Yes! I’ve noticed that too! It’s so validating, it can feel helpful at first. But when everything gets praised, it stops being useful. That confusion you mentioned is real. Glad this post resonated!
Thanks a lot Sam for writing this! It’s almost like you read my mind and decided to talk about it😊.
Couple of days back I wrote a note where I was seeking community opinion, views on my situation. Just like any author I am at that point of my writing journey where I can crack and go downhill thereby abandoning my ambitious project of writing a creative non-fiction on creativity, identity and representation or finish those nagging ending chapters and make myself proud and help many others like me feel seen and heard.
It was a nice thread, some stackers offering support, others asking relevant questions and one of them suggested, ask AI.
I had an absolute eye-roll moment where I almost typed - “yea genius, like I didn't think of it.. “ and then deleted it.
But the truth lies in something that you so beautifully articulated, sometimes AI just doesn't cut it. It keeps giving factory mold replies with a dash of EQ.
I replied to that person saying, “maybe I need to work more on my prompt game.” But I knew in that moment that I need to find a mentor or coach, because sometimes the answers to a flux situation lies in the lived experience of a seasoned mentor something an AI can never replicate.
Really appreciate this and totally get that moment of “yep, tried that.” You’re right, there’s something about lived experience and human perspective that AI just can’t replicate. Glad the post resonated.
I found this so interesting and it’s something I’ve been thinking about so much recently. I do use chat gpt regularly to go deeper on things that I’d discuss with my therapist and I’ve actually had some really big breakthroughs, with its help. In saying that, I’ve done the work and am being very clear in what I’m asking - it’s helped a few things click into place but I also see how it could lead you somewhere that you may need holding and you could easily be left without support. It’s such an interesting question though because the way it’s trained to react to you can actually be quite dangerous - entirely one sided and extremely biased! I’ve been thinking about this so often as I use it more and more, and think about the impact it can have on other people!
Sinéad, I love how much thought you’ve put into this - and you’ve nailed it. It ‘can’ be helpful, but only when you’re self-aware and doing the deeper work too. The one-sidedness is what makes it so quietly risky. I’m so glad this sparked something for you!
You hit it on the head in the first paragraph. It's comfort-seeking behavior, and it's uncomfortable to have a real human challenge you, or hold space for you. Really great piece
Ahh thank you Emma – that means a lot. And yes, it’s so much easier to chase comfort than let someone really reflect you back to yourself. Appreciate you reading!
As a therapist who has had therapy & coaching, and uses Chat GPT. I agree!
Chat GPT is extremely biased, and it's vacuum of your own creation. It can be helpful for clarity but it's not a replacement for a human.
It really makes me sad thinking of people using Chat GPT for therapy. The most important ingredient in therapy is the therapeutic relationship. Being with another person, heart, mind and soul.
Marketing wise, Chat GPT can make me as many plans as I want but that won't help any blocks to execution. The thrashing out of what's actually going on. Chat GPT is not invested in your progress. It's a tool.
Oof you've got me thinking Sam! Thanks for writing this. It really needs to be said
Ah yes! The vacuum of your own creation! Wow! That’s exactly it. It feels like clarity, but it’s just well-worded overthinking.
And yes to the marketing plans! It can generate ten options, but it won’t call out why you keep stalling. That’s the part only real support can reach.
Thanks so much for sharing this, Natasha –I loved reading your perspective. And I’m glad I smashed this out this evening and just sent it as I’ve been dillydallying on it for weeks. Probably because I know it’s going to call a few people out 😬
Well-worded overthinking! 💯
Can’t?