The AI-Powered Career Coach, but Not Really

June 2025 | Indu Arimilli

The Problem: Networking panic is real

Every time I open LinkedIn, I oscillate between “Seems like I am doing alright!” and “everyone’s launching a startup and getting a job… HOW!?”

Instead of doom-scrolling my way to self-doubt, I decided to create a personal AI career coach, one that helps me reflect, not compare.

Step 1: Research

I conducted a quick competitive analysis (aka checked how many “AI career coach” tools already exist). They all focused on résumé optimization, and not mental clarity.

I then interviewed a few college friends, from all skills and grade levels asking:

“When you open LinkedIn, what emotion do you feel first?”

Responses: “inspired,” “inferior,” “existential.” P

Perfect user insights!

MVP — MentorMirror

Core Idea:

A browser plugin that rewrites your LinkedIn feed through a growth-lens filter — replacing comparison triggers with actionable learning prompts.

Features:

1. Emotion filter — detects content that triggers negative sentiment.

2. Reframe mode — replaces “X got promoted” with “Want to learn their path?”

3. Mini-reflection prompts — “What skill have you improved this month?”

4. Mood insights — tracks how your emotions shift during scrolls.

Possible User Stories:

• As a student, I want to reframe comparison posts so I focus on growth, not stress.

• As a PM, I want emotional data to improve my social media habits.

Here was my prompt:

“Build a Chrome extension that uses sentiment analysis on webpage text (LinkedIn feed) and color-codes or reframes negative/comparison content with positive prompts. Include a small floating UI for reflection notes.”

Visual Concept:

Conclusion

• Reframing > Removing. It’s not about hiding success, it’s more about contextualizing it.

• AI can be an empathy amplifier when it reflects your mental models back at you.

• My PM takeaway: User pain ≠ bug, it’s a design opportunity.

Now, every time I scroll LinkedIn, I see less of “Everyone’s ahead” and more of “You’re growing too.”