Hi there!
It’s Beatričė. You haven’t seen me in your inbox in a little while, so let me explain why I’m writing to you and why the font looks different now (if you’re the type to notice that sort of thing).
A bit of housekeeping
In case you haven’t heard the news, I’m leaving YouTube.
I uploaded a long video where I explained why. I got a bit philosophical on topics like “the right to be forgotten” and how weird it is to have “ghosts” of your past selves floating around on the internet. If you have 33 minutes to spare, you can watch it here.
The thing is, I still really like content creation! I love figuring out how to best convey an idea and then using creative skillz to make it happen. It’s just—the specific way that I was doing YouTube and Instagram wasn’t working for me anymore. I felt like I was making the same productivity content over and over; I was relying on sponsors to make the whole thing profitable and that didn’t feel so good; and I often worried I was over-sharing my life in ways I would regret later.
I can put up with some of these unsavory “ingredients,” but not all of them at once. I might return to content creation with a different approach. I want to try freelancing for other content creators.
But these are things I’m still figuring out. For now, what I can tell you is that I’m going to continue writing my newsletter.
You may have noticed that this edition looks slightly different. That’s because I migrated the newsletter over to Substack. On your end, Dearest Reader, nothing will change. If you were subscribed to my newsletter previously, you will stay subscribed, and if you want to unsubscribe, there’s a link at the bottom of the email (no hard feelings).
I’m still going to write about life and productivity, and I will still share recommendations for books, articles, videos, etc. that I’m enjoying.
Oh, wait, one thing will change. You can now leave comments! I’m excited to read yours.
Now, onto the real subject of this newsletter.
An older Gen Z gripes about ChatGPT
I’ve noticed myself using ChatGPT a lot these days, but you might not guess I was an avid user if you saw how much I complain about it on a daily basis. Maybe I’m just a hater at heart.
Note: I realize that there are a bunch of generative AI tools out there, so just know that when I say “ChatGPT” I’m actually talking about ALL generative AI.
When I am at my most cynical, I say that ChatGPT enables mediocrity. Before AI, if you had to write something but didn’t want to put effort into it, you still had to spend some time and energy to produce something passable. Now, you can just type in a prompt and click ‘generate’.
Emails sound formal and robotic. Amazon is stuffed with AI-generated reviews. LinkedIn posts are written in the same format, over and over…
⚡A Summer of Growth and Learning at Tesla! 🚘
💼Reflecting on a Summer Internship at Google! ✨
(Why are they always framed by emojis? 😭)
I don’t want to be dramatic, but it’s kind of soul-sucking. When I read the rare email that has a human touch (a small joke! a bit of personality! *gasp*, a typo), it’s like a breath of fresh air.
How AI will affect the educational system is a whole ‘nother can of worms. For now, I’m just trying to evaluate my personal use of ChatGPT. In the same way that my dad keeps reminding me to do math in my head whenever I can to keep my brain sharp and healthy, I want to make sure I’m using ChatGPT in a thoughtful way.
My favorite ways to use ChatGPT
I’m done griping. I’ve found a couple of genuinely useful ways to prompt ChatGPT that I want to share with you. I’ve asked it to play the role of a research guide, a career coach, and even a therapist. Here’s how:
📚 A reading tutor
I think my ability to read academic texts atrophied over the summer. When I came back to school, I couldn't believe how hard it was to sit at my desk and just read for an hour.
I’m reading Four Thousand Weeks by Oliver Burkeman, and there’s a part where he talks about how hard it is to read Heidegger’s writing about mortality. You see, Heidegger invents frustrating terms like “Being-towards-death” and “de-severance.” It’s like, could you please just use common words, what are you even talking about?!
But, as Burkeman puts it, “Everyday language reflects our everyday ways of seeing… Heidegger wants to slide his fingernails under the most basic elements of existence— the things we barely notice because they’re so familiar—so as to prize them away for our inspection. That means making familiar things unfamiliar, using unfamiliar terms. So you stumble and trip over his writing, but sometimes, as a consequence, you bang your head against reality.”
That’s why I think fighting my way through a challenging text is a worthwhile pursuit. Instead of plugging a PDF into an AI summary tool, I like to use ChatGPT as a tutor and ask it specific questions.
what does bricoleur mean in this context?
what did anthony giddens mean by ‘responsible risk-takers’?
I’ll be honest, though, when I’m really stuck on a passage, I just ask it to translate it into simpler words. I try to use this sparingly 😭…
can you re-phrase this like I’m 12?
🔍 A research guide
While I’m talking about school, I’m also starting to brainstorm topics for the thesis I’ll write next semester. After reflecting on everything I’ve found interesting over the past couple of years, I wrote out this big, disorganized list of potential research areas. I fed that to ChatGPT and asked:
who are some researchers working on these particular topics?
💬 A therapist
Right before hitting ‘publish’ on my “resignation video” last week, I got cold feet. I gave ChatGPT the transcript of the video, confessed that I was nervous, and literally said “give me advice”. It actually helped a lot! I just needed someone to take my own words, summarize them, and say them back to me in a slightly different way.
I don’t currently do any sort of counseling, but I do find the practices of cognitive behavioral therapy to be quite useful. I'm sure that having a human therapist is important for certain situations, but for a lot of my everyday worries and anxieties, ChatGPT is actually a perfect sounding board. It's logical, convenient, and free. I can even ask it to identify the specific “cognitive distortions” in what I’m saying.
I definitely don't want to sound like some techno-utopian trying to replace human interaction because it’s “inconvenient,” but I don’t want to have to call up a friend or a therapist every time my thoughts are going in circles. With ChatGPT, I can quickly get a bit of fresh perspective that helps me get unstuck and move on with my day.
💼 A career coach
After finishing my summer internship, I had to update my resume and LinkedIn profile with a few bullet points summarizing my “impact”. My manager had already filled out an evaluation form that was a really complete summary of everything I did that summer, so I just gave it to ChatGPT and said:
please write some bullet points for me to put in my linkedin experience section and also in my resume
also please write a short, punchy paragraph to put on my personal website to summarize this internship experience
Was the result perfect? NOT AT ALL. In fact, the “short, punchy paragraph” really sucked. But instead of spinning my wheels sitting in front of an empty document, I had a great first draft which I could re-work into something actually “short and punchy”.
A few recommendations before I go:
If you like keeping up with consumer trends (idk, I find it interesting), I’ve been loving Casey Lewis’ newsletter on Gen Z trends.
How to use jealousy as a signal for what you’re missing in life.
My boyfriend and I are 2.5 seasons into Modern Family. It’s a perfect blend of good laughs and sentimentality and I feel warm fuzzies at the end of each episode.
As I faced the Senior Scaries and the prospect of trying to find the “perfect career,” I decided to re-read So Good They Can’t Ignore You. In it, Cal Newport de-bunks the “Passion Hypothesis” and makes an alternative case for how to
findcreate work you love.
Some questions:
Shout-out to Chris Guillebeau for the idea of including ‘Conversation Starters’ - he writes a freaking awesome newsletter called Year of Mental Health that you should check out.
How do you think schools and universities should adapt assessments (like essays) now that students can use AI?
What are some clever ways YOU use AI that most people don’t know about?
Have you ever quit any social media or taken a break from it? How’d it go?
Introduce yourself! (I want to make good use of this comments section 🌷)
Until next time,
Beatričė
I'm a subscriber since the pandemic, and I almost cried when I watched your last video. 🥺 Seeing the email notification that you've sent a newsletter warms my heart. Thank you for connecting with people like us around the world. 🥰
Hugs from the Philippines 🇵🇭
Hii! The fact you started using Substack has made me want to try and write as well! I tried to blog years ago in Wordpress, but completely stopped. I loved it though. You shared the Tiktok about how jealousy is a good indicator of what is missing in your life and it touched me. I have been wildly jealous (healthily(?)) of people that create content-- I've been dying to share my thoughts and knowledge but feel like a jack of all trades and a master of none. Also, it scares me having to show my face or staring a project that will never "pop off" (cuz saturated market). So I've been thinking, "what's the point?"
A lot of your content is so applicable and relatable to me, I feel like it's exactly what I want to share. For example, the way you use ChatGPT-- I do the exact same thing. Recently, it helped me figure out my taxes for 2025. That's crazy. I want to share moments like that! I'm also in the process of applying to grad school (with a low GPA and lack of research experience). A challenging path! I'd love to share this experience knowing others could relate. I love spreadsheets, budgeting, productivity, and above all, mental health. That's my passion. But all of this can be so personal that I thought I'd have to show myself face.
When I saw your video when it was published, I realized that if you can move along your journey outside of YouTube and share your thoughts here, I thought maybe this would be a good place to start sharing mine without having to show myself or worry about judgement.
I'm so excited to read more from you and other recommendations you will share. I am proud for your new path. I've been following you since before you took your gap years! 🥹