AI Isn’t the Artist; It’s the Intern. (And Why You Need to Be the Creative Director).

When AI first exploded onto the scene, the headlines were dominated by two emotions: panic ("It’s coming for our jobs!") and hype ("You’ll never have to work again!").

But while the internet argued, I felt something else entirely.

Relief.

At the time, I was overworked. My to-do list was a mile long, my brain was fried, and the budget to hire a human assistant simply wasn't there. I wasn't looking for a robot to write my poetry or replace my strategy. I was looking for someone—or something—to handle the heavy lifting so I could get back to being creative.

I didn't see a replacement. I saw an intern.

The "Junior Assistant" Mindset

If you are struggling to integrate AI into your workflow, it might be because you are giving it the wrong job title.

Many people treat AI like a Senior Strategist. They ask it, "Write me a high-converting landing page," and then they are disappointed when the result feels generic, robotic, or "beige."

That is because AI is not the expert. You are.

Think of AI as the most eager, speedy, well-read Junior Intern you have ever hired.

• They can draft an email in seconds.

• They can summarize a 50-page document instantly.

• They can brainstorm 20 headlines to get you unstuck.

But would you let a Junior Intern publish a press release without checking it? Would you let them speak for your brand without a Creative Director reviewing the tone?

Absolutely not.

Curing the "Blank Page" Syndrome

The real magic of AI isn't that it finishes the work; it’s that it starts it.

We have all been there. You stare at the blinking cursor. You write a sentence, delete it, write it again. You waste twenty minutes just trying to find the momentum.

AI removes the lull.

Now, I can say, "Here are my messy thoughts on this topic—turn this into an outline."

In three seconds, I have a structure. Is it perfect? No. But it is something. It allows me to skip the "building the foundation" phase and jump straight to the "decorating the house" phase. I can focus on the nuance, the emotion, and the strategy, because the grunt work is done.

The Golden Rule: Triple-Check the Work

There is a dangerous trap, however. Because AI is so fast and often sounds so confident, it is tempting to just copy, paste, and post.

Don't do this.

This is how brands lose their voice. This is how you end up sounding like everyone else.

I have spent hours training my AI tools to understand specific brand voices (more on that in a future post), but I still view every output as a draft. I triple-check the facts. I edit the cadence. I inject the human stories that the machine simply doesn't have access to.

The Bottom Line

AI is not here to replace the human element. It is here to protect it.

By outsourcing the organizing, the drafting, and the summarizing to your "Digital Intern," you free up your brain space for the things that actually matter: Connection. Creativity. And the kind of strategic thinking that only you can do.

So, go ahead and hire the intern. Just remember to show up as the Boss.