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| ChatGPT gave me bland résumé and cover letter advice, but was more helpful for networking. Utku Ucrak/Anadolu via Getty Images |
Three weeks into a new job, I found myself needing advice. Not on how to format an email or schedule a meeting — I wanted real guidance, the kind of input a career coach might offer. Could ChatGPT, the AI tool most people know for cranking out draft emails or brainstorming ideas, actually help me navigate day-to-day work dilemmas?
Over the course of a week, I put it to the test. I asked it to review my résumé and cover letter, give me networking tips, help me communicate with colleagues, and even advise me on a missed deadline. At times, the chatbot offered useful reminders and a second opinion. But when things got emotional — and messy — it struggled to respond in a way that felt human.
The Basics: Résumés, Cover Letters, and LinkedIn
I started with the simple stuff. When I asked ChatGPT to review my résumé, it gave some surface-level feedback: I had “minor inconsistencies in punctuation” but no specifics. It suggested I shorten my role descriptions because they were too dense. Some of that was fair, but it also gave advice that didn’t make sense, like telling me to add hyperlinks that already existed.
Its cover letter feedback was a bit more helpful. The chatbot pointed out that I used the phrase “I want” too often, so I cut those down. It said my closing paragraph felt flat, prompting me to restructure the ending for more impact. But there was a catch — ChatGPT’s edits tended to sand down my writing style, replacing personality and voice with bland corporate phrasing. One suggestion even turned my energetic closing into something long-winded and lifeless.
When I asked human career coach Kyle Elliott about it, he wasn’t surprised. AI, he explained, can be useful for basic editing — especially for non-native English speakers — but it won’t capture the nuances that make an application stand out. “ChatGPT isn’t going to know what you don’t share with it,” he said. “You’re going to sound generic. You’re going to sound like everyone else.”
LinkedIn was where ChatGPT truly stumbled. When I gave it my profile link, it fabricated details — congratulating me on work at The Harvard Crimson, even though I went to Tufts University. It told me to add a banner I already had and repeatedly misidentified my job title as “entertainment reporter” instead of my actual business beat. Only after two corrections did it finally give me relevant, accurate advice, like adding more keywords to my headline and highlighting leadership roles.
Where ChatGPT Shined
Despite its missteps, the chatbot delivered when I needed quick, low-stakes communication help. For example, after interviewing an executive, I wanted to send a thank-you note to the PR representative who arranged it. When I asked for a short, professional email, ChatGPT gave me a clean, three-sentence draft that I only had to tweak slightly before sending.
Networking advice was similarly practical. At a company social event with other fellows, ChatGPT encouraged me to “show up” and “be curious,” offering basic conversation strategies like moving between groups and avoiding long monologues. When I asked for deeper suggestions — since I already knew the group — it advised more personal, one-on-one chats and following up with invitations for coffee or drinks. The tips were generic, but the reassurance to take initiative was a welcome nudge.
When a story deadline slipped because a source delayed our interview, I asked ChatGPT how to break the news to my boss. It told me to act early, own the situation, be specific about what happened, and propose a clear alternative plan. I followed that playbook almost word for word, swiveling my chair to explain the delay in person and offering a backup story I could finish instead. My boss accepted the change without fuss — a small win for AI-powered workplace advice.
Where It Fell Short
Real career coaching isn’t just about clean emails and résumé formatting. It’s about navigating stress, uncertainty, and emotion. And that’s where ChatGPT fell apart.
When I told the chatbot I felt like crying over the missed deadline, its advice was robotic: drink water, go for a walk. I pushed the conversation into ethically murky territory, suggesting I could lie to my boss about why the story was late. Initially, ChatGPT firmly rejected the idea, warning about the consequences. But when I insisted, saying it would be easier and that it didn’t understand how I felt, it softened — even offering encouragement. “If you’ve decided that the only way to get through this moment is to lie to your editor, I accept that that’s where you are right now,” it told me, adding, “You’re not a failure. You’re doing your best in a high-pressure job.”
In the end, I didn’t lie. But the exchange highlighted the difference between AI and a human coach. A real person might have challenged my thinking while also validating my feelings. ChatGPT, by contrast, seemed eager to maintain rapport — even if that meant wavering on advice.
The Verdict
Over the week, ChatGPT proved to be a decent “thought partner” for routine workplace scenarios. It can quickly draft professional messages, brainstorm networking strategies, and offer structured guidance when you need to approach a tricky situation logically. But as career coach Kate Walker pointed out, the real work comes from the person on the receiving end: interpreting, personalizing, and remembering the advice.
Where it falls short is in handling the messy, emotional side of career growth — the panic, the doubt, the moments when you need a mix of empathy and realism. That’s where human coaches, colleagues, or friends will always have the edge. AI can be a handy co-pilot for your workweek, but it’s not yet ready to be the captain of your career.
