How Do I Use AI?

A question everyone seems to be asking these days: How are you using AI?
The follow-ups come quickly: How is it helping you? and How might it be hurting you?

Personally, I’ve found AI to be a legitimate productivity enhancer. I’m getting a lot more done because I can lean on a few trusted tools. Am I an expert on AI or its many platforms? Heck no. I expect to keep learning—probably a lot—in the weeks, months, and years ahead.

For now, I mainly use AI in three ways.

1. Smarter (and Faster) Searching

First, I use AI to ask questions across a wide range of topics. It’s like internet search on steroids. My favorite tool here is Perplexity.

Downtown Josh Brown from Ritholtz Wealth Management and Eric Clarke, the former founder of Orion, both convinced me to try it earlier this year—and they were absolutely right. Perplexity is powerful for both personal and professional problem-solving. Compared with traditional search engines, its answers are more immediate, the follow-up suggestions are typically spot-on, and the packaged responses are presented clearly enough that I can often communicate them directly to others.

The result: faster, more efficient, and more effective learning. I now do far more searches than I ever did before.

2. Meeting Summaries That Actually Work

Second, like many professionals, I use AI-powered meeting summaries. Most of my experience here is with Zoom’s built-in tools, which are remarkably effective at capturing key themes and action items. Honestly, it’s better than any meeting secretary I’ve had in my career—and I’ve had some good ones.

Quite frankly, I should use this feature even more often.

3. Content Creation and Copy-Editing

Third, I use AI for content creation—especially for copy-editing. ChatGPT is my go-to tool.

I still write the first draft of all my articles myself to make sure I capture my voice, message, and themes. Having written so much over the years, I’ve developed a recognizable “style” and consistent patterns. When I prompt ChatGPT to “write in the style of Rusty Vanneman,” it’s surprisingly close.

The copy-editing is excellent—not only in fixing grammar and punctuation but also in improving organization and flow. I haven’t relied much on AI yet for idea generation, though I can see that becoming valuable. I also use ChatGPT for quick research, but I’ve learned to double-check its numbers. When an article involves lots of data, my confidence drops unless I verify the sources first.

My Concerns About AI

Even with the benefits, I do have concerns.

First, AI can sound too polished.
My writing has always needed editing, but sometimes the AI version feels almost too good—too clean, too smooth. There are no rough edges left, and while that might make for easier reading, it can also make the writing sound less human. Maybe that’s fine. Time will tell.

I’ve always liked sub-titles, alliteration, the power of threes, dashes, and inspirational language—but AI uses all of these stylistic tricks, and often better than I do. I’ll admit, I’m a little jealous. Sometimes I even re-edit to remove a few of those elements, just to bring a little imperfection back in.

Second, AI can be too nice.
Sometimes ChatGPT flatters me. I prefer a more balanced approach—constructive criticism, not just encouragement. I’ve learned I can prompt it to be more critical, but I need to remember to do that consistently.

Third—and maybe most important—is what AI might take away.
My biggest concern is losing the habit of writing multiple drafts. That has always been the hard part, but it’s also where the thinking deepens and the message crystallizes. You have to “touch” the data and ideas several times for them to truly sink in.

By leaning on ChatGPT for copy-editing—which does save me tremendous time—am I weakening that process? Will my writing skills atrophy? Will I retain information as well as before?

It reminds me of losing certain mental muscles in the smartphone era—like remembering phone numbers or having a good sense of direction. Those skills have faded, but look at the time we’ve saved. Is it worth it? So far, I think so—but I’ll admit, I’m a little concerned.

The Bottom Line

AI helps me do more—and do it with greater confidence. It genuinely boosts productivity, and I’m sure I’ll continue learning new ways to use these tools.

Still, the challenge remains: how to harness AI’s efficiency without losing the human touch that makes our work, communication, and thinking distinctly our own.

P.S.

My original idea for this article was not to have ChatGPT copy-edit it. I wanted to see if I could produce a clean version on my own. But when push came to shove… I couldn’t resist.

So yes, ChatGPT polished this piece. The original draft was 857 words; this version came out smoother at about 828 - and it's a better article than my draft.

Thanks for reading.