If you’ve turned on the news or scrolled through Instagram in the past few months, you’ve seen the buzz created around new AI technologies. So, this week I wanted to take some time to cover how you can use this technology to make your own life easier.

AI (artificial intelligence) language models like ChatGPT and Jasper are enjoying the spotlight this year. If you haven’t tried them out or don’t know what they do…. essentially, these are online software programs that have the ability to interpret natural language and provide human-like responses. In a nutshell, that means you can type in questions or commands as if you were writing a message to a real person, and the software will produce an equally human-like response. Yet, unlike a human, it has the ability to scroll through the entirety of the internet in moments to produce answers for you with lightning speed.

What has the world buzzing over these programs is their ability to understand and interpret the text you enter into them in the same way a real person would, including an ability to modify its response based on your follow-up questions or commands. The trick to these programs is knowing how to use the commands and prompts to direct the program to get the answers you need. There are countless YouTube videos and articles on how to prompt and direct these programs if you want to dive deeper, but this article is merely meant to be an introduction for people who haven’t gone down the rabbit hole on AI, so we’ll keep it surface level for today.   

Now, if you’re in the other camp of people who haven’t used these programs and think AI technology seems a bit too scary or futuristic for daily use… I’m happy to share that there are a number of ways you can start to use an AI language model to make your family’s life easier right now to save you time, help you communicate, and even help you plan that much-needed vacation.

Here are three everyday applications for AI that you’ll want to start using today.

1. Get Help Avoiding the “Blank page” or Writing a Tough Message

My wife and I both suffer from the “blank page syndrome.” If I need to write a marketing message, highlight a particular area of the law in an exciting way, or my wife (who is a realtor) needs to write an interesting description for a home on one of her listings, we’ve turned to AI. Instead of staring at a blank page and frustratingly watching the cursor blink for minutes on end as we’ve done in the past, we now use ChatGPT to get us started and it’s worked out great. For us, it is a starting point that can spark inspiration on where we want to go. Don’t get me wrong, we end up writing it ourselves, but it is a starting point and something to build on. Not to mention that once it gives you something to start with you can ask it to make the response more exciting, funny, caring, heartfelt, or whatever you are trying to convey, and it works. These technologies have definitely been a time saver for us and made life a little bit easier on avoiding the “blank page syndrome.” 

On the other hand, I think it’s safe to say that we all have times in our lives when we’ve had to deliver an uncomfortable message via email, text, or phone. Maybe you’re resigning from a job, critiquing someone’s work, or delivering bad news. Whatever the situation might be, it can be stressful to try and deliver a difficult message in a way that clearly delivers your message with the right tone. Instead of staring blankly at your email or anxiously picking up the phone, try drafting out your message in an AI language model like ChatGPT or Jasper first.

For example, if an employer needs to approach an employee about a performance issue and they typed the following prompt into ChatGPT:

“Imagine you need to give negative feedback to an employee. This employee is friendly and hard-working but makes many spelling mistakes in the company’s meeting minutes. You want the employee to know that you value having them on your team, but that their accuracy needs to be improved. Write an email that I could send to this employee.”

ChatGPT provided the following sample email that you can then use:

“Dear [Employee Name],

I hope this email finds you well. I wanted to take a moment to provide you with some feedback regarding the meeting minutes you have been responsible for drafting. First and foremost, I want to express how much we appreciate your hard work and dedication to the team. You are a valued member of our team, and we are lucky to have you.

However, I have noticed that there have been a number of spelling mistakes in the meeting minutes recently. While I understand that mistakes can happen, accuracy is critical when it comes to recording important decisions and actions taken in meetings. I wanted to bring this to your attention so that we can work together to improve the accuracy of the meeting minutes.

I would like to suggest that you take some extra time to review your work before submitting it to ensure that it is error-free. You might also consider using spell-check or grammar-check tools to assist you in catching any mistakes.

Please know that we have confidence in your ability to improve in this area, and we are committed to supporting you in any way we can. Please feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns.

Thank you again for your hard work and dedication to our team.”

Not only did the software draft a natural-sounding email, but it suggested ways the employee could remedy the situation. What’s more, you can ask the AI to further modify and refine its previous responses. For instance, you could ask it to rewrite the email with a more empathetic or casual tone, or to shorten the length of the message.

Gone are the wasted hours trying to craft the perfect email for a challenging situation!

Even if you need to communicate with someone over the phone, using an AI language model can help get the conversation off on the right foot by providing you with an outline for how to start the conversation or outlining the points you want to cover.

2. Find the Best Flight Prices Faster

If you’ve ever planned a family vacation, you know how time-consuming searching for flights can be. What seems like an easy enough task on the surface can easily become a day-long marathon of comparing airlines, prices to save a few bucks, considering layovers and the difference in travel time if you fly from one city versus another.

Now, thanks to an integration with KAYAK, you can ask ChatGPT questions about your travel plans and ChatGPT will sort through your travel options for you.

For example, you could ask, “What’s the cheapest flight from Chicago to Orlando?” and the software will provide you with the best options that meet your request.

Want a direct flight? You can alter your request by adding, “Show me direct flights only” to further narrow down your options. No need to worry about manners, you can simply be direct and to-the-point with your requests.

Want to compare prices depending on what day of the week? You can ask the software, “What is the cheapest day to fly to Orlando from Chicago in June?”

The KAYAK integration is currently only available for paid ChatGPT subscribers, but plans are underway to make it available in the software’s free version. If you’re anxious and want to try out ChatGPT’s KAYAK integration, paid subscriptions are billable based on how much you use the software and include a free five-dollar credit to get you started.

3. Create a Better Resume and Cover Letter

Whether you’re actively looking for a job or wondering how you could improve your resume to increase your chances of a promotion, having a great resume can mean the difference between getting an interview and being passed up. But it can be difficult to write a resume or cover letter that truly conveys the value of what you bring to the workplace without sounding overly self-promoting. Thankfully, using an AI language model like ChatGPT can help flesh out your resume and create a cover letter that will stand out to a company’s hiring manager.

For example, let’s imagine a receptionist for a medical clinic wants to apply for a similar position at another clinic. They’ve written a resume, but don’t feel confident that it highlights their skills well. So, they paste the skills from their resume into ChatGPT and entered the following instruction:

“Improve this job description for my resume:

●         Take patient phone calls and respond to messages

●         Schedule appointments based on the provider’s availability

●         Help team members with questions

●         Follow-up with patients to reschedule canceled appointments”

ChatGPT provided the following improved bullet points:

●         Responding to patient inquiries via phone, email, and messages with a friendly and professional demeanor, while providing accurate and helpful information.

●         Coordinating and scheduling appointments based on the availability of healthcare providers, while ensuring that patient needs were prioritized.

●         Supporting and collaborating with team members by answering questions and providing guidance when needed.

●         Conducting timely follow-ups with patients to reschedule canceled appointments and ensure their continued care.

The output from ChatGPT conveys their responsibilities in a more interesting and descriptive way. By using an AI language model such as this, you can either start your resume or cover letter from scratch or get tips for how to improve a resume you already have. You can also use the software to customize the same cover letter for different companies, saving countless hours in your job search.

4. Get Help with Your Kids Homework

If you have kids, you know that helping them with their homework can sometimes feel just as tough for you as it does for them. The good news is that you can use an AI language model to walk through homework problems to make them easier for your child - and you - to understand.

All you need to do is type the math problem into the software program and ask for an explanation. For example, I entered the following into ChatGPT:

“Explain how to do this math problem to a 4th grader: 1/2 X 2/3 =”

ChatGPT responded with the following:

“Certainly! We want to find out what happens when we multiply these two fractions together. To do that, we need to multiply the numerators (which are the numbers on top) and then multiply the denominators (which are the numbers on the bottom).

So 1/2 X 2/3 would look like this:

To multiply the numerators, we just multiply the numbers on top: 1 X 2 = 2

And to multiply the denominators, we just multiply the numbers on the bottom: 2 X 3 = 6

So the answer is 2/6!

But we can simplify this fraction by dividing both the numerator and the denominator by the greatest common factor, which is 2. If we divide 2/6 by 2, we get 1/3. So, the final answer is 1/3!

That means if we had one whole thing that we cut into two equal pieces, and then we shaded in one of those pieces, and then we took that one piece and cut it into three equal pieces, and then we shaded in two of those pieces, we would end up with 1/3 of the whole thing.”

Pretty helpful, right? Now that was a simple example, but you can ask even more complicated math questions or questions for other subjects as well. 

Not only can this help you and your child better understand their homework, but you can help eliminate the frustration you may feel over the daily homework struggle.

More Than Legal Advice - Your Trusted Advisor

By using AI technology, you can save time, communicate more effectively, and plan vacations with ease. As your Personal Family Lawyer®, I will use AI and other technology in my own practice to create more efficiency and better service, so I can use my time to better serve you. I’m here to do the parts of lawyering that can never be replaced by a machine and be a trusted advisor for my clients and their families. I know that life can be hectic and stressful, and I’m here to provide resources that can make your life easier now and in the future.

In that vein, I love learning about new technologies and the ways they can improve our lives. But I also know that technology - no matter how good - can ever replace the humanity and care that real people have to offer. For me, the best part about technology is that by saving us time, it will free us up to spend more time focusing on what’s most important - connecting with one another.

That’s why when it comes to your legal planning, I offer a Family Wealth & Legacy Strategy Session™ where I not only discuss how the law affects you and your loved ones, but I truly get curious with you about your life, your goals, and the legacy you want to leave behind, so you can rest assured knowing that your estate plan will work perfectly for you. And by using the best technology and systems to do my work, I’m able to be more available to my clients when they need me most.

If you're interested in learning more about how I serve my clients differently than most lawyers or have questions about estate planning, please don't hesitate to schedule a free 15-minute discovery call with me today at (630) 233-4223. I’m not just a legal advisor, I hope to be your family’s trusted advisor for life.



Also, if you’ve taken the time to read this week’s blog article all the way to the end, please shoot me a message and let me know what you thought. It’s always nice to get feedback from people and to know you’re following along!

This article is a service of Family Wealth & Legacy Legal Solutions (FWLLS). We do not just draft documents; we ensure you make educated, informed and empowered decisions for yourself and the people you love. That's why we offer a Family Wealth & Legacy Strategy Session™, during which you will get educated and begin to prepare to avoid life’s most common legal problems and get a plan in place to make the best possible choices for the people you love. You can begin by calling our office today to schedule a Family Wealth & Legacy Strategy Session and mention this article to find out how to get this $750 session at a significantly discounted rate, or even for free.