It seems like there’s nothing written today that doesn’t include a reference to artificial intelligence. Perhaps you’re wondering which bloggers and other writers are writing their own material or how they’re using AI in the content they produce.
Here’s how I use AI at Compassionate Geek and, frankly, in everything else I write.
Get Past the Blank Page
Anyone who writes knows how difficult it is sometimes to just get started. Some people refer to that as getting past the blank page or dealing with varying degrees of writer’s block. Sometimes, I may have an idea for a blog topic or a course lesson, for example, but I find myself struggling with how to get started. I might go to ChatGPT and write a prompt such as “Write 300 words about dealing with difficult people. Write it from the perspective of an I.T. person working as a technical support engineer at a managed service provider.” The AI will produce something that is, at its best, an average piece of writing, but it’s a start. I then edit it extensively for accuracy and readability, using my own words and often incorporating stories from my own experiences.
Create Lists
Lists are popular with readers and search engines, so I often write articles based on lists, such as the top three ways to do something, 10 best practices for something, or 5 must-haves for your business success. I’ve found artificial intelligence to be a great resource for creating lists. It often remembers things I’ve forgotten. Occasionally, it even comes up with list items I never knew. I take what the AI produces, rewrite it, and check it for accuracy before publishing it. I may also add stories or examples.
Using Artificial Intelligence to Summarize Longer Articles
Many of my blog posts are 200 to 300 words long. Others, however, might be considerably longer. The shorter posts are fine for use in social media and YouTube videos. The longer posts need to be shortened for those venues. When my team or I write a longer post, I’ll frequently paste it into ChatGPT and ask it to create a 200 to 300 word summary. As with first drafts and lists, the summaries produced by AI require extensive editing and re-writing to ensure their accuracy, improve their readability, and put them in my voice.
I see artificial intelligence today as an entry-level writing and research assistant. I write the content published under my name. I’ve also used professional writers in the past and continue to use them today for content written under the name Compassionate Geek Staff. Even with a great professional writer, I still need to edit to put it into my own voice, ensure readability, and incorporate appropriate stories. This is especially true if I’m putting my name on whatever it is. The longer AI is around, the better it will get. It’s likely in the near future that good AI-written content will be indistinguishable from human-written content. We’re not quite there. Even when that happens, it still won’t have my stories or my unique perspective. I see AI as taking care of the bland, monotonous parts of writing, which frees me to rewrite it and make it great.
Next Level IT Customer Service Training
Enroll your team now in Compassionate Geek IT online customer service training so they can work together, get things done, and take care of customers.