Not the scary version. The practical version, where AI writes the first draft and you get your evenings back.
Let me guess how it went. You heard AI could change your business. You opened ChatGPT once, typed something vague, got a generic answer that sounded nothing like you, and quietly closed the tab. Meanwhile the proposal is still not written and you are still working at 1am.
The problem was never the tool. Nobody gave you the words to put in it.
What AI is actually good at
AI is not good at being you. It is good at giving you a first draft to react to. And for event professionals, the first draft is exactly where the hours disappear. Here is where it earns its keep.
- Proposals: a structured first draft in minutes, that you then make yours.
- Client replies: the polite, professional version of what you actually want to say.
- Captions and content: ten options to pick from, instead of staring at a blank screen.
- Vendor briefs: the same information, formatted clearly, every single time.
- Timelines and run sheets: a solid starting structure you refine, not build from zero.
AI is good at giving you a first draft to react to. Reacting is faster than creating.
The one skill that changes everything
A prompt is just an instruction. And event people are already excellent at giving instructions. You brief vendors, clients, and teams every single day. Using AI well is just pointing that existing skill at a tool that works for free, at 2am, without complaining.
The difference between output you are proud of and output that embarrasses you is teaching the tool to sound like you. Give it your tone, your examples, your non-negotiables. Do that once, and every draft after starts closer to done.
AI does not replace the planner. It replaces the blank page. The judgment, the taste, the relationship, all of that is still yours. It just gets to start further along.
Start with one task
Do not try to automate your whole business this week. Pick the one task you dread most, probably proposals, and use AI for just that, for one month. When you feel the hours come back, you will find the second task yourself.
AI Is Not Your Enemy
80 prompts that turn AI into the assistant you cannot afford yet.
See the AI →Suggested caption: AI is not going to replace you. It is going to write your first draft while you sleep. New on The Diary: where AI actually saves event planners hours.