Well, it finally happened. I’ve been waiting for this moment. I was on Zoom with a prospective client last week; at the end of our call, he asked: “Why leadership coaching vs. ChatGPT?”
My quick retort: “Let’s say you prompt ChatGPT with ‘How do I improve my executive presence for interviews?’ GenAI will give you a list of four responses, right?”
He nodded.
I deadpanned: “Well, I can tell you which one is the best answer.”
He smiled broadly.
_____
Now, allow me to give the less snarky answer to “leadership coaching vs. ChatGPT.” (BTW, this is my own list and not from a ChatGPT prompt 🙂).
- CURATION:
I love ChatGPT and use it all the time to distill themes from lots of data (i.e., culture assessment, 360 report). Or during a coaching session, we will be batting an idea around, and one of us will say, “Let’s ask the ‘robot.'” ChatGPT is the ASSIST. Here’s one recent question: “How do I best handle my CEO, who is overpromising with a customer on what our product can do?” The ASSIST spit out a fine list. From there, I was able to CURATE (customize) a response with my client, based on 6 months of knowing him deeply.
- DISCERNMENT:
My ability to curate is based on my keen ability to discern. We hear this a lot these days — how important it is to judge/discern/interpret the data coming at us, and that’s our advantage as humans. Indeed, a great coach notices a lot about the leader in front of us (e.g., emotionality, anxiety, tolerance for feedback, strengths). So it does stand to reason that the more experience a coach has (i.e., seeing similar situations over and over again), means they will be able to discern and curate more effectively.
- ACCOUNTABILITY:
There are scads of wearables these days that can learn who you are, and keep all of you (weekend) athletes in check. The same holds true for leadership goals (yes, some wearables can give you data on your stress levels in the moment based on biofeedback markers). And you can train ChatGPT to learn your predilections too, and ask it to keep tabs on you. Again, use all of these tools for the feedback data. Collect it, interpret it, and then ask your coach if they agree, and to further explain. Similarly, I do this with my financial advisor: I read about the stock market in Barron’s and WSJ; yet, I am a novice, and she isn’t. I use her as a sounding board, and ultimately, she will help me stick to a plan.
- EMPATHY:
Last I checked, ChatGPT isn’t smiling back at me yet (yeah, I know that’s coming). And Gen AI’s jokes are pretty flat, actually. Let’s please agree that human connection isn’t ever going out of style, and when a coach says, “You’re going to be ok,” it’s truly meaningful. I say this especially in light of a 2025 HBR study that said GenAI’s highest use case is Therapy/Companionship.
How People Are Really Using Gen AI in 2025 by Marc Zao-Sanders
