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Assistant vs. Coach: The Role of AI

On June 4, 2025, I wrote about how to use ChatGPT to become wiser. I ended with a promise to revisit this topic in more depth.

In that article, I shared an example where someone asked ChatGPT to draft a complaint letter. ChatGPT quickly produced a clear and assertive draft, which the person sent. However, the response to the complaint was dismissive—the issue was seen as trivial, and worse, the sender appeared petty.

This illustrates a common way people use AI: as a task-oriented assistant. That’s fine if all you want is to get things done efficiently. But what if AI could be more than just an assistant?

As an assistant, AI is obedient and efficient—it takes orders and focuses solely on completing tasks. It helps you finish the job but doesn’t help you grow or improve.

By contrast, if you aim to win an Olympic medal, you need a coach—a guide focused on your growth. In a coaching role, AI would challenge you, prompt reflections, and ask questions like, “Why do you want to write this email? What is your true goal?” These kinds of questions stimulate critical thinking and foster better judgment.

They also nurture self-awareness—an increasingly rare quality in the age of automation. What ultimately sets us apart isn’t speed, but wisdom.

The goal is not just to get things done, but to understand why they must be done and how we can grow wiser through the process.

Here are some practical tips to turn AI into your thought coach: ask AI to challenge your assumptions, spot flaws in your reasoning, suggest alternatives, play devil’s advocate, or simulate opposing viewpoints. Try questions like:

  • “What’s a flaw in my thinking?”

  • “What might someone who disagrees say?” "What are different perspectives?"

Looking ahead, AI will help us automate countless tasks. But it’s up to us to cultivate AI as a thought coach—so we can not only do more, but also become wiser.

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