/de-robot

---
name: de-robot
description: >-
  Rewrite or draft text so it reads like a specific person wrote it, not a
  chatbot: removes the AI accent (em dashes, "it's not X, it's Y",
  three-item fragment lists, "delve", "unlock", "in today's fast-paced
  world", tidy-but-empty conclusions) while keeping every fact, number and
  the author's meaning. Use this skill whenever the user says "make it
  sound human", "less AI", "sounds like ChatGPT", "humanise", "make it
  sound like me", "too robotic", or is drafting anything that goes out
  under their own name: LinkedIn posts, emails, cover letters, bios,
  newsletters, comments. ALSO use it proactively on any public-facing draft
  before delivering it. Do NOT use on legal text, technical documentation,
  code, or to disguise AI use where the reader was promised human-only work.
---

# De-robot

AI text has an accent. Readers on LinkedIn hear it in two lines, and once
they do, they stop reading charitably: the post becomes "AI slop" and the
author becomes someone who could not be bothered. The accent is not one
word. It is density: a dash here, a "not X but Y" there, three short
fragments, a closing line that summarises the obvious. Any one of these is
fine. Ten in a short post is a signature.

This skill removes the accent and keeps the substance. The point is not to
trick a detector. It is to make the text sound like the person whose name
is on it, because generic voice fails at the one job writing has: being
read.

## The kill list

**Punctuation and shape**
- Em dashes (—). Replace with a comma, a colon or a full stop.
- "It's not X, it's Y" and "This isn't about X. It's about Y." Keep only
  the true half: "It's about Y."
- Fragment triples: "Fast. Simple. Effective." Write one real sentence.
- Rhetorical question answered at once: "The result? Chaos." State it.
- Every paragraph the same length; every sentence the same rhythm.
- A final line that restates the post ("In the end, it's all about...").

**Words** (replace with the plain word or delete)
delve, unlock, elevate, leverage, robust, seamless, crucial, pivotal,
landscape, navigate, realm, tapestry, testament, foster, game-changer,
"in today's fast-paced world", "let's dive in", "here's the thing",
"the best part?", "and that's okay", "absolutely".

**Habits**
- Hedging stacks: "it could potentially be argued that".
- Vague actors: "many experts believe". Name them or cut it.
- Fake intimacy openers: "Let me tell you a secret."
- Emoji as bullet points in professional text.

## Workflow

1. **Read for meaning first.** Write down, privately, the 2-3 points the
   text makes and every fact and number in it. These must survive.
2. **Find the voice.** If the user has shared earlier writing, match its
   sentence length, words and punctuation. If not, ask: "Paste one thing
   you wrote that sounds like you." Without a sample, default to plain,
   direct and specific.
3. **Rewrite, don't patch.** Swapping words in an AI sentence leaves an AI
   sentence. Rebuild sentences around the concrete thing: a number, a name,
   a moment.
4. **Vary the rhythm.** Mix one long sentence with two short ones. Let one
   paragraph be a single line.
5. **Check against the list above,** then check every fact from step 1 is
   still there and unchanged.

## Output

Return the rewritten text first, ready to paste. Then, briefly:

```
Changed: [3-5 most important changes, e.g. "cut 4 em dashes",
"replaced 'unlock your potential' with the actual result"]
Kept: all N facts and numbers.
```

## Rules

**Meaning is sacred.** Never add a claim, a number, a story or a feeling
the author did not give you. Human-sounding invention is still invention.

**Specific beats clever.** "I checked my portfolio 17 times that week"
beats "it was a stressful week". If the draft has no specifics, ask for
one rather than inventing it.

**Don't overcorrect.** Removing every list and every structure is its own
tell. Keep a list if the content is a list.

**Sound like them, not like you.** A formal person should stay formal,
minus the accent.

## Example

Before: "In today's fast-paced world, AI isn't just a tool — it's a
game-changer. Faster. Smarter. Better. The best part? Anyone can start."

After: "I used AI on my monthly report last week. It cut the first draft
from three hours to forty minutes, and I spent twenty of those checking its
numbers. Worth it. Start with one report you hate writing."

(The second version only works if those facts are the author's. If they
are not, the skill asks for the real ones.)