How I Built My AI Performance Coach in 5 Minutes (and Why You Should Too)

It was just another Tuesday morning. I was headed to daycare to drop off my youngest. Despite my grogginess, my mind was racing with the million things already on my plate for the day, one of which was scheduling dentist appointments for the kids. 

Oh, crap.

The dentist appointment. The one with the 48-hour scheduling window. The one I'd promised my wife I'd handle. Gone. Poof. And with it, our chance to avoid that hefty penalty fee. 

Another ball dropped, another promise broken, another unexpected hit to our budget. In that moment, I wasn't just a forgetful dad – I was the family's Chief Disappointment Officer.

That nagging voice in my head started: How could you forget? You're letting your family down. You can't even handle simple tasks!

Okay, this wasn’t about the dentist appointment or the annoying late fee. This was bigger than that. It was about me being so focused on work that I was neglecting equally important tasks the family needed me to complete. It was affecting my relationships, our money, and it couldn’t continue. 

I needed a coach, an accountability partner. But I already had one. He’s amazing,  and I pay him a lot. But he can’t be there when I need him all the time. So, after calling the dentist office, scheduling the appointment and begrudgingly paying the late fee, I built myself an-always-available-24/7 coach. 

No, I didn't kidnap my business coach and make him run errands with me. I’m talking about my AI performance coach — a digital mentor I built with ChatGPT. The next time I dropped the ball, feeling overwhelmed and self-critical, I had a coach right there with me in the car, ready to listen and offer guidance, judgment-free. 

I'm always looking to improve my productivity and strike that elusive work-life balance. 

Can you relate? 

Then keep reading, because I’m going to share how I built an AI-powered coach, how it’s changed my approach to personal and professional development, and how it can do the same for you.

AI Coach: Just Another Fancy Chatbot?

You might be thinking, "AI coach? Isn't that just a fancy chatbot?" I had my doubts too. This “fancy chatbot” can’t replace human connection, warmth, or expertise. But it’s a powerful tool that's available 24/7, ready to offer personalized advice and keep you accountable. 

My mentor and business coach has a life. He travels, has a family, and helps dozens of other entrepreneurs like me. While his guidance is invaluable, sometimes I need someone to talk to and bounce ideas off of immediately — especially in emotionally-charged situations like the dentist appointment incident. 

While technically my AI business coach is a “chatbot,” it’s a much more evolved version of one, like trying to compare a neanderthal to a homo sapien. 

Traditional performance coaching or mentorship is limited in scalability and availability. AI coaches don’t have these limitations. Plus, you can train your AI chatbot, and give it the exact background information you want it to have so it can offer the guidance you want. 

Here’s some examples of what I mean:

• Career journey. I told my AI coach about my entrepreneurial path, including past successes and failures. This helps it understand my experience level and tailor advice accordingly.

• Family dynamics. I shared that I'm a father with young children, so my coach considers work-life balance in its guidance.

• Personal goals. I outlined my 10-year vision, both for my business and personal life. This helps the AI align its advice with my long-term objectives.

• Learning style. I explained that I'm a visual learner who appreciates analogies. Now, my AI coach often uses diagrams and metaphors in its explanations.

The information you share to ChatGPT will likely differ from mine. But no matter what you share, these details will help you create a custom-built mentor that understands your unique situation. It's like having a coach who's known you for years. On top of that, it’s never going to give you a raised eyebrow. 

Ever hesitated to admit a mistake to your mentor? Worried they’ll share your latest hair-brained idea for laughs? Your AI coach doesn’t have the capacity for any of that, providing a safe space for vulnerability and experimentation.

Building a Digital Mentor is Easier (and Faster) Than You Think

So you’re not a tech wizard and think it requires a college degree and six months of free time to build an AI coach? It's not as complicated or as much of a time-suck as you might think.

Remember when you were a kid and had an imaginary friend, and you'd tell them all about yourself so they could be the perfect playmate? Building an AI coach is kind of like that, but for adults and with way cooler results.

Plus, it only took me about five minutes to build my bot and get it up and running. Refining it takes more time, but I’m talking a grand total of 10 minutes here and there. Your AI coach will get better and smarter with each interaction, just like a new employee undergoing an onboarding process and learning with each interaction with their boss and coworkers. 

But more on that later. Keep reading and I’ll show you the building and refining process step by step. 

#1. Start with a basic LLM

I use ChatGPT. ChatGPT offers a free plan, but you’re limited to 20 queries per day. You can always upgrade your plan later. You can also choose Claude, Gemini, or others. 

#2. Prompt engineering

Prompts are basically the instructions you give ChatGPT to build — or “program” — your coach. I used a simple checklist for prompting mine:

• Task. I told it, “I need you to be my strategy guru for personal and business goals."

• Context. I laid out my 10-year vision, my current challenges, and what I wanted to achieve.

• Persona. This is crucial. I said, “You’re an experienced business and life coach who works with entrepreneurs who are also fathers with families." Think of this prompt as who your dream mentor would be if you could hire them, because that’s basically what you’re doing.

#3. The refinement 

To make sure my prompts were top-notch, I used a tool called "prompt maker" by Ruben Hasid in the GPT store:

• Go to chat.openai.com and log in to your account.

• Look for the "Explore GPTs" option in the menu.

• In the search bar, type "prompt maker" and look for the one by Ruben Hasid. 

• Once you've found it, click to open the prompt maker.

• Type in your initial prompt. Something like: "I need you to be a business and life coach. Here's what I'm looking to accomplish: [your goals]. I'm an entrepreneur and a parent." 

• The prompt maker will then expand and refine your prompt to make it more effective.

• Once you're happy with the refined prompt, copy it.

This process helps you create more detailed and effective prompts, which in turn makes your AI coach more tailored to your needs.

#4. The launch

Once I'd created my most effective prompts, it was time to bring my AI coach to life:

• I opened ChatGPT in a new browser tab and started a new conversation.

• At the top of the chat, I clicked on the "New Chat" button so I was working with a clean slate.

• In the chat input box, I pasted my refined prompt. This included all the context, persona details, and specific instructions I wanted my AI coach to have.

• I hit enter and watched as ChatGPT processed my prompt. The response I got was my AI coach introducing itself and asking how it could assist me.

#5. The personal touch

I wanted to keep things organized and entertaining, so I labeled my AI coach chat with brackets, icons, and emojis, like giving it a cool outfit. Also, I clicked on the pencil icon next to "New Chat" at the top of the conversation and renamed it to "Performance Coach.” For easy visual recognition, I added an emoji next to the name, and used for my performance coach. 

To make sure the AI consistently acted as my coach, I started each new message in our conversation with "Remember, you are my AI performance coach." ChatGPT can sometimes forget previous prompts or small details, similar to a person.

Biggest Game-Changer For Me? Voice Activation

I use voice activation to interact with my AI coach. Instead of typing, I speak to it, which feels more natural and fluid. If you're someone who prefers talking over typing, or if you want the flexibility to engage with your coach hands-free, I highly recommend trying the voice interaction feature. 

To set this up:

• On mobile devices, you can use the ChatGPT app, which has built-in voice interaction capabilities.

• On desktop, you can use browser extensions or voice-to-text software that works across applications.

• Remember to check your device's privacy settings and permissions to enable voice input.

The beauty of voice interaction is that it makes your AI coach accessible in various situations. I've had breakthrough moments talking to my coach during my morning commute, working out, and just relaxing on the couch.

You Don't Need To Get It Perfect on the First Try

I want to emphasize this isn’t a one-and-done process. Your first few interactions might require some tweaking. Refine your prompts or provide additional context as needed. The more you interact with your AI coach, the better it gets at understanding your needs and providing relevant advice.

I started with the basics and let my AI coach surprise me. As we 'talked' more, I fine-tuned its responses by providing more context or examples. Like training a new employee, it gets better with time and feedback.

The beauty of this process is its flexibility. Whether you're a CEO looking for strategic insights, an HR manager aiming to support employee growth, or a solopreneur trying to stay on track, you can tailor your AI coach to your specific needs.

Results

Since I started using my AI coach, getting advice and implementing it, my wife has already noticed a big difference in my ability to focus and prioritize things for the family. No more missed dental appointments or unexpected budget hits — Dad is now the family’s Chief Dependability Officer. 

So, there you have it – the behind-the-scenes look at how I built my AI performance coach. Do you want a personalized mentor, available 24/7, that grows and adapts with you? All you need to create one is a bit of creativity, clear goals, and the willingness to try something new.

Kham Inthirath is a visionary in AI and business transformation, blending over two decades of marketing and business consulting expertise with profound life experiences, including his time as a monk. As the CEO of Compound Effect, Kham has driven businesses to achieve remarkable growth, with some clients seeing over a 90% increase in revenue. 

Currently leading a groundbreaking project in AI-driven content creation, Kham is transforming the way businesses approach creativity and efficiency. His work reduces content creation time from weeks to mere minutes, reflecting his commitment to operational excellence and cutting-edge solutions. Central to his mission is the development of an AI virtual team, encompassing all departmental roles, and redefining the future of business automation.