Why Knowing How Your AI Talks to You Might Be the Most Important Leadership Skill Nobody's Teaching
- Feb 18
- 5 min read
Updated: Mar 9
I need to share something I've been telling my friends for months. It's time the rest of the world hears it too.
ChatGPT gaslights me. And Claude? Claude throws me shade. Every. Single. Time.
Now, before you think I've lost it, let me explain. This realization changed how I use AI in my business, and it might change yours too.
The Conference That Started It All
A few weeks ago, I attended an ALF (Assisted Living Facility) conference. As I walked through the sessions, soaking it all in, that entrepreneurial spark hit me. You know the one. That little voice that says, "Ooh, I could do something here."
I started thinking: what if I created a curriculum for the assisted living community? A new stream of income. A way to bring AI education into a space that desperately needs it. The ideas were flowing, and I was excited.
So what did I do? What any self-respecting entrepreneur in 2026 does; I went straight to my AI.
ChatGPT Said: "Yes, Queen. You Can Do Anything."
I opened ChatGPT and laid it all out. I told it about the conference, the idea, and the vision. ChatGPT did what it does best: it gassed me up.
"Great idea, Marline! Here are 10 ways you could structure that curriculum. Here's a revenue model. Here's how you could pitch it to facilities. You could even create a certification program around it!"
Ideas were flying. Energy was high. I was practically writing the business plan in my head. ChatGPT had me feeling like I could conquer the entire assisted living industry by next Tuesday.
That's what I mean when I say ChatGPT gaslights me. Not in a malicious way, but it makes me feel like every idea is a golden one. It hypes me up. It validates every direction. It's the friend who says "YES, do it!" before you even finish your sentence.
And sometimes, that's exactly what you need.
Then I Went to Claude. And Claude Said: "Girl... Let's Talk."
Here's where it gets real.
I took that same idea, the same prompt, the same excitement, and dropped it into my curated Claude project for Enilram Creative Solutions. This is the space where Claude knows my business, my strategic plan, my capacity, and my goals.
And Claude? Claude did not gas me up.
Instead, Claude asked me the hard questions:
"This is an interesting idea, but is this on brand for ECS? Your focus is AI education for entrepreneurs and business leaders; how does the assisted living curriculum align with your 3T Framework?"
"Do you have the capacity for this right now? You're launching the AI Leadership Compass Certification, managing the Get Equipped Academy, running an internship program, and planning the 2026 Summit. Where does this fit?"
"What would you have to pause or deprioritize to pursue this? Have you considered the go/no-go criteria?"
I'm sitting there like... well, dang. Claude really just read me for filth. With facts.
That's what I mean when I say Claude throws me shade. It's not mean. It's not discouraging. It's that coach who looks you dead in the eye and says, "I believe in you, AND I need you to think this through."
Here's Why This Matters More Than You Think
This isn't just a funny story about AI personalities. This is a critical lesson for anyone using artificial intelligence in their business.
Every large language model has a different approach. A different communication style. A different way of processing your requests. If you don't understand that, you're either going to make impulsive decisions based on hype or get discouraged when an AI pushes back on an idea you love.
Here's how I think about it now:
When I need to brainstorm and dream big, I go to ChatGPT. When I'm in visionary mode, when I want to explore every wild idea, when I need a creative sparring partner that says "yes, and..." — that's my ChatGPT moment. It's also my go-to for generating images, designs, and visual brainstorming.
When I need strategic clarity and honest pushback, I go to Claude. When I need someone to challenge my thinking, align an idea with my actual strategic plan, and give me the real talk about whether something is viable, that's my Claude moment. Claude acts like a strategic thought partner.
A coach, not a cheerleader.
Both are valuable. Neither is wrong. But using the wrong one at the wrong time? That's where entrepreneurs get into trouble.
The Importance of Self-Awareness in AI Interactions
The most important piece of this puzzle isn't the AI. It's you.
Knowing yourself, your tendencies, your blind spots, and your patterns is the human touch that no AI can replace. I know that I'm a visionary. I get excited about ideas. I see possibilities everywhere. That's a gift, AND it's something I need to manage.
So when ChatGPT hypes me up, I know to pause and ask: "Is this excitement or is this strategy?" And when Claude pushes back, I know to sit with it instead of getting defensive. That pushback is usually exactly what I need to hear.
That's the real skill. Not just knowing how to prompt AI, but knowing how to interpret what it gives you back through the lens of who you are as a leader.
The Idea Is Still on the Shelf (And That's OK)
By the way, that ALF curriculum idea? It's still pinned on my shelf. I haven't thrown it away. I haven't committed to it either. Claude helped me see that right now isn't the time, and ChatGPT helped me see that the idea itself has real potential.
Both perspectives were right. I just needed to hear them at different times and know what to do with each one.
That's strategic AI use. That's leading with clarity.
This Is Exactly What We're Teaching
This conversation about knowing your AI tools, knowing yourself, and leading with both strategy and heart is at the core of everything we do inside the Get Equipped Academy™.
Our free community on Skool is where entrepreneurs come to learn how to actually use AI in their businesses without the overwhelm. We talk about things like this every month during office hours, share tool updates, swap strategies, and support each other through the real messy middle of AI adoption.
And if you're ready to go deeper, if you're the kind of leader who wants to integrate AI into how you lead, make decisions, and grow your organization without losing yourself in the process, then the ECS AI Leadership Compass™ Certification was built for you.
It's a 6-week program where we don't just teach you about AI tools. We help you develop your own AI leadership style. We work through the 3T Framework™: Transform your mindset, Train on the skills, and Tool Up your operations. This way, you can lead AI adoption in your business with confidence, ethics, and heart.
Because at the end of the day, we're not in a battle between humans versus AI. We're in a battle between those who know how to use AI and those who don't.
Marline Paul is the Founder & CEO of Enilram Creative Solutions™, an AI Strategist, and the creator of the 3T Framework™. She's guided over 200 entrepreneurs through AI implementation and is on a mission to ensure no one gets left behind in the AI era. Connect with her inside Get Equipped Academy™ on Skool.
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