Let’s get something clear up front.
ChatGPT is not magic.
It’s not a genius.
It doesn’t know your business better than you do.
But if you learn how to use it the right way, it becomes a powerful tool that can save you time, spark ideas, and help you move faster with less effort.
This post walks you through what ChatGPT is actually good at, what it’s not great at, and how to make it work even when it falls short. If you’ve ever felt like you’re not getting the results you want, this will help.
Let’s break it down.
What ChatGPT Is Good At
Think of ChatGPT like a creative partner who works fast, never runs out of energy, and can give you a first pass on almost anything.
Here are the areas where it really shines.
1. Beating the Blank Page
This is where most people get stuck.
That blank screen. The blinking cursor. The pressure to come up with something good from nothing.
ChatGPT is great at giving you a place to start. You can ask for headline ideas, blog outlines, content hooks, or product angles. Even if none of them are perfect, the act of reacting to something instead of starting from zero can unlock your creative momentum.
2. Rough Drafts and Quick Outlines
When you need something fast, ChatGPT can help you sketch it out.
Try prompts like:
- Write a quick outline for a 5-day email course on building a digital product
- Create a rough first draft for a blog post on content repurposing
- Give me a simple structure for a YouTube script on finding your niche
It won’t sound exactly like you, and it probably won’t be publish-ready. But that’s not the point. You get a working draft you can edit and improve, instead of wasting time trying to write from scratch.
3. Simplifying Complex Ideas
ChatGPT is surprisingly good at breaking things down.
If you’re trying to explain something that feels complicated or layered, it can rephrase it in a way that’s easier to follow.
Ask it to:
- Summarize something for a beginner
- Turn a technical concept into plain English
- Use a metaphor to make your point more relatable
This is especially useful when your audience is just starting out or when you want to sound more human and less academic.
4. Creating Repeatable Formats
If you write the same type of content often, like weekly newsletters, product descriptions, or sales emails, ChatGPT can help you create templates to speed things up.
Give it examples of your best work, and ask it to mimic the format. This way, you can create new content faster while keeping the tone and structure consistent.
5. Thinking Through Ideas With You
One of the most underrated uses is idea expansion.
You can ask it questions like:
- What are three different ways to position this offer?
- What objections might someone have before buying this?
- What’s a different way to describe this feature that sounds more benefit-focused?
It won’t always give the perfect answer, but it keeps the conversation going. And that momentum is often all you need to get clarity and move forward.
What ChatGPT Is Not Great At
Now let’s talk about where it falls short. These are the places where people often get frustrated.
Knowing what ChatGPT struggles with will help you adjust your expectations and use it more effectively.
1. Original Thought
ChatGPT does not create new ideas from scratch. It pulls from patterns it has seen before, based on its training data.
If you’re trying to write something fresh, something that sounds like a bold opinion or a unique insight, you’ll need to bring that part yourself. ChatGPT can help with structure, examples, or tone — but not originality.
2. Emotional Depth and Personal Experience
It doesn’t know your story. It hasn’t walked in your shoes. It can’t feel.
That means when you want to share something meaningful, vulnerable, or emotionally resonant, you have to be the one to add that layer. ChatGPT can mimic tone, but it can’t replace lived experience.
3. Context and Continuity
ChatGPT doesn’t remember what you did last week. It won’t stay aligned with your brand voice unless you remind it every time.
If you want consistent messaging or a specific tone, you’ll need to set the context clearly with every new session. Think of it like giving directions to a contractor — the more specific you are, the better the results.
4. Factual Accuracy
This is a big one.
ChatGPT does not pull from real-time data. It is not a search engine. And it sometimes guesses when it doesn’t know something.
If you need stats, quotes, news, or anything that needs to be fact-checked, always verify it on your own. Use ChatGPT for idea generation and explanation, not for research you can’t afford to get wrong.
How to Make ChatGPT Work Anyway
Now that you know what it can and can’t do, here’s how to get the most out of it.
1. Be Clear and Specific
Vague prompts lead to vague results.
Instead of saying:
Write a blog post about content marketing
Try this:
Write a 1,200-word blog post for coaches and online business owners explaining how to use content marketing to grow an email list. Make the tone friendly and relatable, and include a three-step framework.
The more context you give, the better the output.
2. Keep the Conversation Going
You don’t have to settle for the first answer.
Ask ChatGPT to improve what it just gave you. Try prompts like:
- Make this sound more conversational
- Shorten this into a list format
- Add a story that illustrates the main point
Treat it like a back-and-forth. The more you shape the answer, the more useful it becomes.
3. Build a Prompt Library
Once you find a few prompts that work well, save them. Build your own library of go-to prompts for tasks you do often.
You can create prompt templates for:
- Social captions
- Blog post outlines
- Course descriptions
- Landing page copy
- Weekly emails
This helps you stay consistent and work faster over time.
4. Always Add Your Voice
Even if the output is decent, always take time to edit. Add your rhythm. Use your own words. Include your stories or examples.
This is where the real value comes in. Your audience isn’t looking for polished AI copy. They’re looking for something that sounds like you — something they can connect with.
5. Use It to Support You, Not Replace You
ChatGPT is here to support your work, not do it for you. Use it to brainstorm, to outline, to save time on repetitive tasks. Let it take care of the busywork so you can focus on the parts that matter most — like connecting with your audience, building real relationships, and growing your business with intention.
Final Thoughts
ChatGPT can be a huge asset when you know how to use it. It’s fast, flexible, and always ready to help.
But it works best when you treat it like a tool, not a shortcut.
It’s not here to replace your voice. It’s not here to take over your ideas. It’s here to help you create with less friction.
Use it wisely. Shape it with your own perspective. And always add the one thing it will never have — your human touch.
If this was helpful, check out the newsletter. That’s where I share more tools, prompts, and simple strategies to help you get more done with AI without losing your voice in the process.
See you there.
