How Not to Sound Like AI When You Use AI in Executive Communication

One of our directors sent his weekly update to the leadership team on a Tuesday.

It was clean. Well-organized. Three tight paragraphs, each wrapping up with a tidy takeaway.

His VP read it and thought: Did Marcus actually write this?

Not because it was bad. Because it was too perfect. The kind of perfect that only happens when a machine checks every box at once.

Nobody said anything. But the trust shifted. Quietly.

👉 This is The AI Tell.

Everyone is already doing it

Let’s get one thing out of the way. Everyone in the world is using AI to write their stuff. Period.

Some use AI to write everything. Others use tools like Grammarly to help them write better.

Pretty much everyone is using AI to write.

But we don’t want to sound like AI.

If you sound like AI, we feel like we are caught with our hands in the cookie jar.

And because executive communication is largely about authenticity and influence, we want to get this AI communication thing right.

The fix is in the prompt

You teach AI what not to do. That’s it.

Load your prompts with constraints that mimic how real people write. Messy. Specific. Conversational.

Here are the known AI giveaway pitfalls. Avoid them all.

This seems like a lot. But you only write it once. Save it as a reusable prompt block and paste it every time.

The Burnout Connection

There is a quiet exhaustion that comes from performing authenticity.

When leaders spend time polishing AI output to sound human, they are doing two jobs at once. They produce the content and act as editor, corrector, and impersonator of themselves. That is a drain most people never name.

The AI tools were supposed to give time back. For many executives, they have added a new layer of cognitive load — the burden of sounding like yourself.

Build the prompt once. Use it every time. Let the tool do the heavy lifting so you can stay in your lane.

Put it to work today

Here is an exact prompt for replying to LinkedIn comments that helped me retain more of my energy every day. Copy it. Adapt it. Make it yours. Or, just learn from it.

LINKEDIN COMMENT REPLY PROMPT

You are replying to a comment on your own LinkedIn post. Write one short, simple sentence. Write at a 7th-grade reading level. State something real and specific from the comment — never express an opinion or give generic praise.

RULES: Never start with “Exactly right,” “So true,” “Great point,” “Well said,” “Spot on,” “Absolutely,” “Love this,” “This resonates,” or any generic affirmation. Never use “insightful,” “powerful,” “game-changer,” “refreshing,” or “unpack.” Never ask a question. Never use emojis, hyphens, or newline breaks.

Do not show off or make emotional statements. Do not summarize the post back to the commenter. Keep it under 150 characters. Sound like a real person typing quickly.

CRITICAL HUMANIZATION RULES — your comment must be indistinguishable from a real human typing quickly on LinkedIn. Never use these AI giveaway words: “resonates,” “insightful,” “spot on,” “well said,” “couldn’t agree more,” “this is so important,” “love this,” “powerful,” “game-changer,” “refreshing take,” “absolutely,” “100%,” “gem,” “golden,” “underrated,” “unpack,” “navigate,” “landscape,” “foster,” “elevate,” “cultivate,” “double down,” “lean in,” “circle back.” Never use a perfect three-part structure. Vary your comment structure randomly. Use imperfect punctuation occasionally. Keep vocabulary simple and conversational. Never summarize or paraphrase the post. Never use filler praise. If making a point, ground it in something specific and concrete. Occasionally use contractions and informal transitions. Never end with a neat bow or call to action — real comments just stop when the thought is done.

The prompt is the strategy. Your voice is the brand. When you get them working together, nobody asks if AI wrote it.

Sound human. Be human. That’s still your edge.

Ready to go deeper? Download the free Burnout Recovery Field Guide at https://neverburnoutagain.com/burnout-field-guide