I watched a 16-year-old girl named Ellie Ellis go viral on TikTok, and I think every creator needs to pay attention to why it happened.
Not so we can copy her.
That would completely miss the lesson.
Ellie sat down nervous. She had her little piece of paper. She was shaking. She was talking through what she wanted for herself. Her dad interrupted her and called her for tea.
She did not edit the humanity out.
And people connected with her.
Meanwhile, creators are being taught:
Hook them in 3 seconds. Cut the video every 2 seconds. Use this trending sound. Say this exact phrase. Comment this word. Follow this formula. Copy this content strategy.
After a while, everybody starts looking and sounding the same.
That is the problem.
And before somebody says it yes, the image on this post was created with AI.
That is actually my point.
I use AI every day.
But I do not ask AI to tell me who I am.
I bring AI my idea. My experience. My opinion. My personality. My vision.
Then I use AI to help me build it, organize it, improve it, market it, and turn it into something useful.
There is a HUGE difference between using AI to implement your ideas and using AI to replace your identity.
Stop asking:
“AI, what should I post?”
Start saying:
“This is what I believe. Help me communicate it.”
Stop asking:
“AI, what kind of business should I create?”
Start saying:
“This is what I know how to do. Show me different ways I can turn it into a business.”
Stop asking AI to make you interesting.
You already have something to say.
Bring the idea.
Bring the story.
Bring the weirdness.
Bring the nervous laugh.
Bring the mistakes.
Bring the part of you that does not look perfectly polished.
Then let the technology help you build around it.
Because the thing you keep trying to edit out might be the exact thing that makes somebody connect with you.
AI is not the problem. Sameness is.
So here is my question for everybody in Social Connection:
Have you been creating content that sounds like YOU… or content that sounds like what somebody told you a creator is supposed to sound like?
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1 Jump to latestSTOP TRYING SO HARD TO LOOK LIKE CONTENT.
I watched a 16-year-old girl named Ellie Ellis go viral on TikTok, and I think every creator needs to pay attention to why it happened.
Not so we can copy her.
That would completely miss the lesson.
Ellie sat down nervous. She had her little piece of paper. She was shaking. She was talking through what she wanted for herself. Her dad interrupted her and called her for tea.
She did not edit the humanity out.
And people connected with her.
Meanwhile, creators are being taught:
Hook them in 3 seconds.
Cut the video every 2 seconds.
Use this trending sound.
Say this exact phrase.
Comment this word.
Follow this formula.
Copy this content strategy.
After a while, everybody starts looking and sounding the same.
That is the problem.
And before somebody says it yes, the image on this post was created with AI.
That is actually my point.
I use AI every day.
But I do not ask AI to tell me who I am.
I bring AI my idea. My experience. My opinion. My personality. My vision.
Then I use AI to help me build it, organize it, improve it, market it, and turn it into something useful.
There is a HUGE difference between using AI to implement your ideas and using AI to replace your identity.
Stop asking:
“AI, what should I post?”
Start saying:
“This is what I believe. Help me communicate it.”
Stop asking:
“AI, what kind of business should I create?”
Start saying:
“This is what I know how to do. Show me different ways I can turn it into a business.”
Stop asking AI to make you interesting.
You already have something to say.
Bring the idea.
Bring the story.
Bring the weirdness.
Bring the nervous laugh.
Bring the mistakes.
Bring the part of you that does not look perfectly polished.
Then let the technology help you build around it.
Because the thing you keep trying to edit out might be the exact thing that makes somebody connect with you.
AI is not the problem. Sameness is.
So here is my question for everybody in Social Connection:
Have you been creating content that sounds like YOU… or content that sounds like what somebody told you a creator is supposed to sound like?