AI Lab
The AI Hype Machine: What No One Is Telling Online Coaches & Course Creators
Is artificial intelligence truly the magic bullet that will revolutionize your coaching business overnight? Or is it being dangerously overhyped? Let's cut through the noise and have the conversation no one else is willing to have.
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The Uncomfortable Truth About AI in the Coaching World
Let me be clear: I'm only speaking to people in the coaching and content space. And I'll probably get flack for saying this, but... AI is being massively overhyped. Not underhyped, that's for sure.
The technological advances in AI come with bold promises: replacing your entire team, transforming industries overnight, generating millions in revenue. But how many of these promises are accurate, and how many are being embellished?
Since staying current with AI's evolution is practically a full-time job, I wanted to help you sort through the fluff and start a no-nonsense conversation about the actually relevant uses of AI in your specific business.
As you know, I write exclusively for one audience: Online Experts. If you're a coach, course creator, or membership owner, this is for you. My thoughts on AI integration refer to our business, our industry—not others.
1
Your coaching business won't be replaced by AI overnight
Despite what the doomsayers predict, your expertise and human connection remain irreplaceable in the coaching space.
2
Most new AI tools promise the world but underdeliver
There are literally thousands of new AI tools launching every month, each claiming to revolutionize your business. The reality? Most fall dramatically short.
3
Many "wow" AI features are irrelevant to growing your coaching business
Sure, AI-generated videos and jingles are cool, but they're not going to be the key factors that grow your coaching business in 2025.
The Hidden Dangers: AI as Your Coach, Therapist, or Advisor
I'm going to be very transparent about my personal experience: Using ChatGPT for life advice makes me feel uncomfortable. It's subtle, but I know that feeling. I trust that feeling. Something is fundamentally off about it.
Looking back at my career and success, so many of my best decisions were divinely guided. Intuitive nudges, dreams, synchronicities that led me to opportunities, people, and mind-blowing accomplishments. I will NEVER replace divine guidance with artificial guidance.
Will you?
"People BELIEVE what AI tells them as if it's FACT. TRUTH. LAW. Wait, what?!"
When you begin to understand how large language models really work, you realize much of it is just mirroring data back to you. Many AI critics are making the case that AI actually creates and encourages narcissism—YOU are always the main character, always in the right, and can never do anything wrong (unless you specifically prompt your AI otherwise).
Maybe you should do a little Google search for "AI Hallucinations" and dive down the rabbit hole of how often ChatGPT and similar tools will... lie. Make things up. Fabricate "facts" out of thin air.
And yet, we believe it. Act on it. Base life-changing decisions on it.
Your Brain on AI: The Science Behind the Warning Signs
MIT Research Findings
The first round of studies on prolonged AI usage are coming back, and it's no bueno. Researchers at MIT found that extended use of ChatGPT is actively dulling brain function.
Decreased Memory & Brain Connectivity
Memory and brain connectivity decreased drastically despite users becoming "more efficient" at completing tasks. The question becomes: would you sacrifice brain power just to get a bit more done?
Use It or Lose It
When you outsource too much of your critical thinking, the phrase becomes disturbingly true: when you don't use it, you lose it. Your cognitive abilities can literally atrophy.
The fundamental question isn't whether AI can make you more efficient—it clearly can. The real question is what you're sacrificing for that efficiency. Are you willing to trade your cognitive abilities, your intuition, and your unique thinking patterns for a few more completed tasks?
I hope not. But it ultimately comes down to HOW you use AI (more on that in a moment). The right approach can help you leverage AI as a tool without surrendering your most valuable asset: your mind.
The Energetic Death of AI-Generated Content
I get it. Most people like "easy." Most people are lazy. And it's certainly easy to have a machine create content for you—especially in an industry where content is marketing. And our business is marketing.
But most online experts who are "outsourcing" their content to AI haven't thought this through.
When you write, speak, or share your authentic message, that message carries a unique Energetic Signature that magnetizes your people to you. AI doesn't do that. It CAN'T do that. It's ARTIFICIAL. It has no "spark."
That's why people are suddenly noticing something is off. Content feels flat. Dead. Lifeless. Unoriginal. The internet is becoming flooded with this energetically vacant material.
I know I don't think like most. I'm a little weird. I'm not here in this business because I can make money. I'm here because I have something to say. Something to share. I want to help, I can help, so I do help.
If you were advising me, would you encourage me to keep teaching, sharing, and perfecting my message so it's more powerful and magnetic? Or would you tell me to flip the "autopilot" switch and have ChatGPT create my content?
The Personal Branding Death Spiral
I've seen Instagram reels from marketing experts I used to look up to... they're ALL AI-generated. The voice is fake. The video is fake. The content... fake. All AI-generated.
Here was my first, internal subconscious reaction: this person doesn't care. They don't care about what they're teaching or who they're teaching it to. It's about pumping as much stuff out to as many people as possible.
This brings in a distinction that's becoming more relevant than ever before: Personal Branding—the context and impression a thought leader creates that determines how you think, feel, and act when you engage with their content.
AI Content Creation
Outsourcing your voice and thoughts to artificial intelligence
Quality Degradation
Content lacks authenticity, originality, and energetic connection
Brand Damage
Audience perceives you don't care enough to create your own content
Business Decline
Decreased trust, engagement, and ultimately, revenue
AI will expedite your content... but at what cost to your personal brand? In 2025, it's about QUALITY, not QUANTITY. So why would you choose AI to make 100 low-quality videos a day?
Yes, AI can help inspire ideas, "punch up" copy, and give feedback... but that's DIFFERENT than handing the wheel over to AI completely. The question becomes: who is managing whom here?
The Authenticity Advantage in a World of AI Clones
Every newsletter you read from me is ME. Every social post comes from something I originally said. All my coaching calls are ME. I mean... would you prefer it be AI? I don't know, but I PREFER to create that content MYSELF.
So, frankly put, if you can't come up with your own original content… you shouldn't be in the content creation business.
People want YOU. Your unique perspective. Your authentic voice. Your genuine energy. In a world increasingly populated by AI clones, authenticity is becoming your greatest competitive advantage.
When everyone else is outsourcing their thinking, their voice, and their creative process to the same AI tools, they're all starting to sound the same. The internet is becoming an echo chamber of identical AI-generated content.
This creates an unprecedented opportunity for those willing to remain authentic. Your uniqueness—your quirks, your personal experiences, your distinctive way of explaining concepts—these become increasingly valuable as they become increasingly rare.
The coaches and course creators who will thrive in the AI-saturated future aren't those who use AI most extensively—they're those who use AI most strategically while preserving what makes them irreplaceably human.
AI as Your B+ Employee (Not Your Replacement)
A few months ago, I surveyed all my newsletter readers to see what degree they're using AI in their business. The average usage: 44%. Apparently, the average online business owner's total workload is driven or fueled by AI 44% of the time.
For me personally? It's closer to 10 to 15%. I don't use it THAT much. But I DO have some cool and clever uses for it!
AI as a Team Member, Not a Replacement
I choose to look at AI just like another employee—a B+ employee that can handle certain tasks that I shouldn't be doing myself, gets work off my plate, and speeds up processes.
No Team Members Fired
I have NOT fired any team members to replace them with an AI agent. That's frankly lame. Instead, I encourage my entire team to use AI to support them in their roles.
Efficiency Without Sacrifice
We're getting tasks off my team's plate so we can move more efficiently, but I'm not building complex automations just so AI can draft an email or book a sales call.
Perhaps I'm not "impressed" with AI because I've been using virtual assistants to do MOST of the tasks that AI can now assist with. So I've never been doing these tasks myself (transcripts, descriptions, simple research, etc).
The key difference in my approach is that AI serves us—we don't serve it. We use AI intentionally and strategically to enhance our work rather than replace our thinking or our humanity.
The Smarter Way to View AI: Strategic Integration
Despite my skepticism about the AI hype machine, there are genuinely useful applications that can help you work more efficiently without sacrificing your unique value or cognitive abilities.
The key is to view AI as a tool that supports your expertise rather than replaces it. Think of it as having specialized assistants for specific tasks—each with clear boundaries and limitations.
Research Accelerator
Use AI to gather initial research on topics, compile statistics, or summarize long articles—but always verify the information and add your unique insights.
Content Enhancer
Have AI help with proofreading, suggesting headline variations, or identifying areas where your content could be more engaging—but maintain final creative control.
Systems Optimizer
Employ AI to help streamline operational processes, organize information, or draft initial templates—tasks that don't require your unique expertise or perspective.
The most effective approach is to use AI for tasks that don't require your unique human qualities—empathy, intuition, creativity, and critical thinking—while reserving those distinctly human elements for where they create the most value.
This strategic integration allows you to leverage AI's efficiency without compromising what makes you irreplaceable to your clients and audience.
Your AI Action Plan: Finding Balance in a Hyped-Up World
As we navigate this AI-saturated landscape, it's crucial to develop a thoughtful approach that leverages the technology's benefits while protecting what makes you uniquely valuable.
Audit Your Current AI Usage
Take inventory of where and how you're currently using AI in your business. Are you using it strategically or have you slipped into overdependence?
Identify Your Zones of Genius
Clearly define the areas where your unique expertise, voice, and energy create the most value. These are your "no-AI zones" that should remain authentically you.
Create AI Boundaries
Establish clear guidelines for when and how AI tools can be used in your business. Document these for yourself and your team.
Implement Strategic AI Tools
Choose specific AI applications that enhance your efficiency without compromising your authenticity or expertise.
Monitor & Adjust
Regularly assess how AI tools are affecting your work quality, cognitive abilities, and client results. Be willing to scale back if needed.
Remember, the goal isn't to resist technological progress but to integrate it wisely. The coaches and course creators who will thrive in the coming years aren't those who blindly embrace or reject AI—they're those who develop a thoughtful, strategic relationship with these powerful tools.