Is ChatGPT giving good advice? Learn the pros, cons, and hidden risks of relying on AI for everyday tips, and how to use it without losing your edge.
This resource is part of a series on low mood and depression. You can find the other parts here:
1. The Growing Use of AI (current) | 2. Health Advice and AI | 3. Parenting Advice and AI
Is ChatGPT giving you good advice?
Artificial intelligence tools like ChatGPT have quickly become the go-to sources for everyday advice. Whether it’s to write a resume, cook a plant-based meal, prepare study notes or write documents for work, AI can deliver quick, customized tips that can feel almost magical. But as we grow more and more reliant on these systems to complete everyday tasks for us, important questions arise: How accurate is the advice? Can you trust it? And can depending on AI for everyday decision-making actually weaken our thinking.
In this article, we’ll explore the growing use of AI for general life advice, including its convenience, its blind spots, and the emerging research on how AI may change the way we learn and think.
The Upside
One of the biggest appeals of tools like ChatGPT is its ability to respond instantly with useful suggestions often written in a tone that feels conversational and supportive.
Why people use AI for everyday help:
Convenience: available 24/7 for instant response
Personalization: can tailor advice based on your inputs
Privacy: no need to ask awkward questions in public forums, to your family, friends, doctor, etc.
Clarity: explains complex ideas in simple language
AI is especially appealing to young adults and students who are used to searching for fast answers online. According to OpenAI’s usage reports, millions of users interact with ChatGPT daily, many of them for lifestyle, educational, work-related guidance.
Where AI Falls Short
Despite these advantages, there are real limitations. ChatGPT generates answers based on patterns in its training data, not true understanding or verified facts. While it can sound confident, it’s not always correct.
Common Pitfalls:
Inaccurate Information: ChatGPT may “hallucinate” details, including fake references or incorrect steps/information.
Bias in responses: AI reflects the data it was trained on, which may contain outdated or biased perspectives.
Overgeneralization: The advice or recommendations may be too vague or “one-size-fits-all" to apply to your unique situation.
Lack of nuance: AI can miss emotional context or subtleties that a human advisor would catch.
Data privacy: While AI tools can feel private and anonymous, they may store or process sensitive information, raising questions about how your data is used, stored, or even monetized.
Even something as basic as asking for interview strategies can yield mixed results with some responses being helpful while others are misleading or overly simplistic.
The Hidden Risk: Declining Critical Thinking Skills
Perhaps the most concerning risk isn’t just bad advice, it’s what relying too much on AI may be doing to how we think and how our brains function.
Recent studies have highlighted growing concern about how the constant use of generative AI tools like ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini might reduce users’ ability to learn independently and think critically. Students for example may turn to AI to summarize texts or generate ideas instead of reading, researching, or forming their own opinions.
Excessive AI reliance could affect users’ motivation and attention span, especially among younger adults, by dulling the mental reward that comes from struggling through a task and solving it on your own.
Over time, this could lead to a subtle erosion of curiosity, problem-solving skills, and even self-confidence in one’s intellectual abilities.
When we consult with AI for everything, we risk reducing our ability to reflect, research, and evaluate information critically.
How to Use ChatGPT Wisely
AI can be a helpful tool as long as you use it mindfully. The key is to keep control of your thinking and your work, using AI to support your ideas rather than replace them. Here are a few tips to help you stay in charge:
Double-Check the Output. Always take the output from generative AI tools with a grain of salt. Fact-check with reliable sources or professionals.
Ask Better Questions. Spend time thinking about your prompts and be specific. Vague inputs will lead to simple, generic, or inaccurate responses. You’ll get more useful tips if you clearly state your context, goals, or limitations.
Treat AI as a Starting Point. Use ChatGPT to spark ideas, not make final decisions. Let it guide your brainstorming and then do deeper research on your own.
Don’t Skip Learning Opportunities. If you’re tempted to use AI to do all the thinking for you, stop. Read the article, solve the problem, or draft the email yourself to help strengthen your cognitive skills. Use AI to help you condense or simplify the language of your draft.
Stay Aware of Bias. AI may reflect cultural or systemic biases.
AI tools can be helpful for gathering quick tips, generating ideas, or learning new things in a low-pressure environment. But they are just that—tools. Relying on them, especially for complex decisions or repeated use, may come at the cost of developing and maintaining deeper thinking and decision-making skills. As we move into an era where AI is part of everyday life, learning when and how to use it and when to think for ourselves is one of the most important skills.
Explore these additional resources to better understand the risks of using AI:
References
Kosmyna N, et al. (10 June 202) Your brain on ChatGPT: Accumulation of cognitive debt when using an AI assistant for essay writing task. Accessed on 8 July 2025
Dolan EW (27 May 2025) Too much ChatGPT? Study ties AI reliance to lower grades and motivation. PsyPost. Accessed 8 July 2025