Is ChatGPT only for cheaters?

Using ChatGPT as a writing assistant isn’t cheating—it’s a way to work smarter while maintaining the personal touch that makes communication effective. I’ve written before about the "Hacker, Humanist, Hipster, Hustler" framework, and ChatGPT is a great example of the Hustler role in action. It helps you work more efficiently while letting the Humanist in you focus on connection, empathy, and personal touch.

Here are three ways I use ChatGPT to improve my writing, blending the strengths of both hustling and humanism:

1. Drafting Emails or LinkedIn Messages

Often, I need to send a quick message—like requesting a coffee meeting or reaching out to a potential contact. ChatGPT helps by giving me a solid starting point. For instance, I might ask, “Write a 300-character request for a coffee conversation about open roles.” What ChatGPT generates is good, but it doesn’t sound like me—it’s not something I’d be excited to hit “send” on.

That’s where the Humanist side kicks in. I take the draft and tweak the language, adding a bit of humor, making it personal, and ensuring it reflects my voice. I might throw in a little Hipster flair with creative phrasing or word choices that make it stand out. Then, I give the draft one more pass through ChatGPT for a final polish. The result? A message that’s clean, sharp, and still 100% me, ready to go out the door.

2. Improving Responses to Sensitive Emails

Recently, I’ve been talking to my city council member about a safety issue in my neighborhood. I wrote an angry response to one of his emails that made me cringe—it didn’t quite capture what I wanted to say. And he certainly wouldn't have heard my message. So, I fed it to ChatGPT with the prompt: “Make this better.”

What came back was a message that still carried my frustration but did so in a more respectful and professional tone. It had the Hacker efficiency of getting straight to the point while keeping the Humanist empathy intact. After one more round of personal editing to ensure it sounded like me, I sent it off with confidence.

3. Crafting Cover Letters

Job hunting is tough and emotionally exhausting. Applying for roles regularly can drain your energy, and sometimes writing a fresh, engaging cover letter feels impossible. Enter ChatGPT. I feed it the job description and my resume and ask for a draft. The Hustler in me loves this—it saves time and reduces the emotional strain.

Of course, I never send the draft as-is. The Humanist part of me ensures the letter is authentic to who I am, and I tweak it to reflect my experience and personality. After a final review from ChatGPT, it’s ready to go. This process has helped me stay on track with applications, without burning out.

Human Touch Matters

In all these cases, ChatGPT doesn’t replace my creativity or personal touch—it enhances it. The Hustler gets things done efficiently, while the Humanist ensures the message still connects on a deeper level. Using ChatGPT isn’t about cutting corners; it’s about setting yourself up for success with a little help from technology.

By combining the strengths of these roles—Hacker, Humanist, Hipster, and Hustler—I’m able to make my communication more impactful, while also saving time and energy. So no, using ChatGPT isn’t cheating. It’s just a smarter way to work.

I approached writing this article in a similar way. It began with a rough draft of my idea, which I refined through several iterations using the bot until the final product felt right. I even spent a solid hour trying to get DALL-E to generate a graphic with the word "hustler" in it. However, it seems the bot hasn't quite grasped that words can carry multiple meanings—specifically the one I intended: "an aggressively enterprising person; a go-getter."