The pros & cons of using AI in your content (from someone who’s lived both)

real life story and my takeaway

Mindfulink

Jul 16, 2025

Let’s be real for a second:

AI can help you write faster.
But if you’re not careful, it can also help you lose your voice.

I know this because … I did. 😬

Here’s the short version:

There was a time I was writing for a news company, and each morning I had to deliver four articles.

After that, I’d handle posting and engaging on their social media accounts.

Every day, I had to research different topics from climate to energy, renewable energy, and the future of energy and turn them into articles.
It was exhausting.

Then AI started becoming popular, and I thought, Wait a minute... this tool could actually help me.

So I started using it to speed up my writing. And it worked for a while.

But slowly, something started to shift.

I found myself unable to think on my own.
I couldn’t write or form a thought without cross-checking it with AI.
And it got worse.

At a roundtable event, I had a question I really wanted to ask the company we were visiting but I didn’t.
Because I second-guessed myself.

If it didn’t come from AI, I didn’t trust it.

That’s when it hit me:
“Wait a minute. I’m losing myself. My voice. My thoughts. My confidence… to AI.”

So I took a break from using AI.
And in that break, I learned something important:

AI isn’t the enemy.

Misusing it is.

Here’s what I believe now:

→ AI is great for editing.
Not replacing your first draft, but sharpening it.

→ AI is great for structure.
It’ll help you untangle messy thoughts and make your message land faster.

→ AI is terrible for voice.
Unless you’re feeding it your voice. Not just your keywords. (And do not be lied to it can never be YOU)

Here’s how I use it now (and help my clients do the same):

I write the messy first draft myself.
Voice first. Strategy later.
Then I use AI like an intern.
“Clean this up.” “Help me explain this simpler.” “What’s unclear?”
Finally, I re-humanize it.
I add my tone, my analogies, my rhythm.

The goal isn’t to write faster.
It’s to write better.

Faster only helps if your message is still sharp.
And your voice still shows up.

Because your content is how people meet you before they meet you.
Make sure it's actually you they're meeting.