Is AI Being Overhyped?

👇 TL;DR: This Week in The Digital CEO Weekly 👇

✅ Why AI isn't the magic bullet everyone's making it out to be (especially in the online coaching and content world).

✅ 2 ways AI can quietly strip away your intuition, creativity, and unique voice... and how to make sure it never replaces you.

✅ The smarter way to view AI so it speeds you up without taking over.

From the Desk of James Wedmore:

IS AI being "overhyped?" There are some big, bold promises being made by the technological advances of AI (replacing your whole team, changing industries, making millions), but how many are accurate?... and how many are being embellished? 

Since staying up to date with the evolution of AI requires a full time job, I wanted to assist in sorting through the fluff and begin a no-nonsense conversation about the RELEVANT uses of AI in your business.

And as you know, I write all my content for one audience: Online Experts. If you are a coach, course creator or membership owner you are my audience.

So my thoughts on the integration and use of AI in business... will refer to OUR business... our industry... not others.  

So with that being said, I am going to say what no one is saying: AI is being overhyped. I mean, it’s definitely not UNDER hyped, right?

And ya, I’m sure I'll get a lot of flack for saying that... usually from people who are in the AI niche or not making a lot of money. 

Now… that could all change tomorrow. Who knows?! 

AI could become sentient and take over the World by the end of the week! But until then, I believe it’s being overhyped. 

Now let me be clear: I am only speaking to people in the Coaching and Content Space.

Therefore, I am inspired to write on this topic this week because of five reasons: 

1) People think their coaching business and expertise will be replaced by AI overnight... it won’t.  

2) There are 1,001 new AI tools coming out every day promising the World… and almost all underdeliver. 

3) A lot of the WOW features and functions of AI are rather irrelevant to growing your coaching business (making AI animated videos and AI generated jingles is very cool… but may not be the number one thing to grow your business in 2025).

4) AI updates and changes are currently happening so fast, so keeping up is a full-time job. That full-time job could actually be distracting you from really growing your business... and the overnight AI experts popping up all over the place will make their compelling arguments for your attention.

5) There are SUPER COOL functions and uses to save time, money and effort with the advancements of AI... and it’s important you know what those are! 

So in this week’s newsletter, I simply wanted to boil down how you should and shouldn’t be using AI right now.

How You Should NOT Be Using AI

1) As your Coach, Therapist, or Advisor

I am going to be very transparent about my personal experience: 

Using ChatGPT for life advice... makes ME feel uncomfortable.  It’s a very subtle uncomfortable feeling. But I know that feeling. I trust that feeling. Something is off about that...

...and as I look back at my career and success, so many of the decisions... the choices... the paths... were all divinely guided. Intuitive nudges... dreams... synchronicities that led me to opportunities, people and mind-blowing accomplishments.

So, I will NEVER replace divine guidance for artificial guidance.  

Will you? 

And I believe when you begin to understand how large language models really work, so much of it is just mirroring data back to you. 

Many AI critics are making the case that AI is actually creating and encouraging narcissism... YOU are the main character, always in the right and can never do anything wrong (unless you prompt your ChatGPT otherwise!) 

Here’s what gets me going: people BELIEVE what AI tells them as if it’s FACT. TRUTH. LAW.  

Wait, what?!  

Like, if you ask, “should I go left or go right?!” And your AI tells you “left”... are you assuming that is correct? It's LAW?

If you prompt your ChatGPT to make your headline “more catchy”... do you automatically ASSUME it IS more catchy?

I told it to do so... therefore it MUST be so?! 

Maybe you should do a lil Google search for “AI Hallucinations” and dive down the rabbit hole of how often the ChatGPTs of the World will... lie. Make shit up.

...and do we just believe it?!

...act on it?! 

...base our whole life decisions on it?!

Well... I sure do hope not.  

Especially as the first round of studies come back on prolonged AI usage and its effects on the brain, and it’s no bueno.

Basically, researchers at MIT found that prolonged use of ChatGPT is DULLING brain function. Memory and Brain Connectivity decreased DRASTICALLY... despite becoming “more efficient” at tasks.

The question becomes, would you give away some of your brain power just to get a bit more done?

I hope not...

But I do believe it comes down to HOW YOU use AI (more on that in a moment).

When you outsource too much of your critical thinking, the phrase really becomes true: when you don’t use it, you lose it. 

2) To Create Your Content 

I get it. Most people like “easy.” Most people... are lazy.  

And it’s real 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 true authentic message, that message carries with it a unique Energetic Signature. That energetic signature is what attracts and 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 starting to notice...

Something is off. Content feels flat. Dead. Lifeless. Unoriginal. 

And look, I know I don’t think like most. I get it. I’m a little weird. I’m not here in this business because I CAN make a bunch of money.  I am here...

...in this space...

...doing what I do... because I have something to say. Something to share. I want to help, I can help, so I DO help.  

So, if YOU were advising me, would you encourage me to keep teaching, sharing, 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?  

Now look, if you want ChatGPT to generate a kid's coloring book so you can sell 100 copies on Amazon, I'm all for that! BUT, the people I tend to work with have a lot of success because this work is Purpose-Driven. There is a DRIVE to share, teach and impact... why outsource that?

They are like me. Because I am here to share MY message. That message attracts “my” people. 

I've seen a few IG reels from a marketing expert I used to look up to... they are ALL AI generated.  It's fake. The voice is fake. The video is fake. The content... fake. All AI-generated.  Here was my first, internal subconscious reaction: this guy doesn't care. He doesn't care about what he is teaching or who he is teaching it to. It's about pumping as much stuff out to as much people as possible.  

And this brings in a distinction that is becoming MORE relevant than ever before: Personal Branding - the Context Thought Leader has on you that determines how you think, feel and act when you engage with their content. 

AI will expedite your content... but to what consequence for your Personal Brand Image?  I don't need to tell you, in 2025 it's about QUALITY not QUANTITY. So, why would you ever choose AI to make 100 low quality videos a day for you?! 

YES of course... AI can help inspire ideas, “punch up that copy,” and give feedback... but that’s DIFFERENT than handing the wheel over to AI and directing it to create it all for you.  

The question is: who is managing who here?! 

Every newsletter you read 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 dunno... 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.

Cool Ways You SHOULD Be Using AI

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" (meaning tasks, activities, projects, etc) 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!) I choose to look at AI just like another employee, a B+ employee that can do certain tasks that I should not be doing myself, gets work off my plate and speeds up processes.

Perhaps I am 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). 

But today, I am proud to say: I have NOT fired any team members to replace with an AI Agent.  That’s lame frankly.  (I love that quote, “your job won’t be replaced by AI, but by someone who knows how to use AI). 

Instead, I encourage my entire team to use AI to support them in their roles.  And I’ve compiled a list.  It’s a rather big list and growing...

And it’s deserving of its own newsletter. So, that will be PART II.

And despite this list, I still think it's being overhyped.  I'm not building complex Automations just so it can draft an email or book a sales call. I'm not creating an "AI James" that coaches for me or gives sage advice.  

BUT we are getting stuff off my team's plate so we can move more efficiently!

Next week I’ll share the most up to date and accurate ways we are currently using AI and AI-powered software solutions to drive efficiency and growth in our business.  These will be RELEVANT to the Online Expert Coaching Business.

And I think you’ll get a kick out of them, so stay tuned.

This Week In A Meme