This year, the conversation surrounding AI tools like ChatGPT has rapidly shifted—from initial fears and anxieties to undisputed recognition of their necessity. Recently, OpenAI shared that it now has one million business customers paying for ChatGPT, up from 600,000 in April. The takeaway is clear: companies that don’t learn how to leverage the latest technology are leaving money and opportunities on the table.
On an individual level, AI tools like ChatGPT can propel you to the next level in your business or career by supercharging your productivity in meaningful ways. That means fewer hours spent on tedious manual tasks and more time and mental energy for work that moves the needle. As CEO of Jotform, I’m constantly searching for new ways to harness AI’s latest capabilities to streamline my busy work. Here are five prompts to accomplish hours of work in minutes.
Turn Your Creative Wheels Faster
ChatGPT often gets a bad rap for replacing creativity. The truth is, it all depends on the user. People can and do utilize ChatGPT to generate creative content and ideas entirely, but I think this approach has limited value. AI could never create Shelley’s Frankenstein or Melville’s Moby Dick. These masterpieces were born in the human mind.
ChatGPT can, however, help you come up with ideas and streamline your brainstorming. You can explicitly tell ChatGPT that you want the ideas to come from you, but you’d like it to take you through the creative process. Here’s a prompt to use as a guide.
“I am working on [project or content type] and need help generating ideas. Specifically, I’m looking to brainstorm ideas for [specify — e.g., an introduction, premises, themes, angles, etc.]. I’d like you to spark my creativity by asking targeted questions that help me clarify my direction and unlock new perspectives. Can you guide me with a few thought-provoking questions to get started?”
Get Feedback And Validation For Your Ideas
Nothing steals valuable time like a bottleneck—for example when waiting for someone to sign off on your latest project or idea. It’s not necessarily anyone’s fault. At Jotform, for example, our team members collaborate across time zones. If someone in Istanbul needs feedback from a colleague in San Francisco, there’s bound to be a lag.
ChatGPT can step in to help validate ideas and offer valuable feedback. Screenwriter David Cornue shared how he uses the AI tool with these objectives in mind.
“I use ChatGPT all day, every day. I think of it like a writers’ room. Right now I’m working on adapting a novel. I’ll say, ‘Here’s my beat sheet. I feel like this is not dramatic enough. Thoughts?’ It offers ideas, and we have a back-and-forth to talk out the challenges as one would in a writers’ room.”
Explain to ChatGPT what you’re working on and what kind of feedback you’re seeking. You can even specify a role you’d like the tool to play. Try this prompt.
“I have an idea for [project, content type, business, etc.], and I’d like your feedback. Here’s a brief summary of the idea: [briefly describe your idea]. Could you help assess its strengths and potential weaknesses and offer suggestions for improvement? Could you also pose a few questions to help me further refine the idea?”
Rescue Yourself From Research Rabbit Holes
At work, research tends to be one of my favourite tasks, but it can also be the most time-consuming. The internet is designed to take us down rabbit holes—it’s alarmingly easy to lose valuable time on a tangent. ChatGPT can step in to keep you on track through various stages of the research process. You can kick things off with this prompt:
“I’m conducting research on [topic] for [purpose, project, or publication]. My goal is to approach this research in a methodical, thorough manner, ensuring that I gather the most relevant and authoritative information. Could you help me create a structured process to efficiently locate top-tier sources, evaluate key information, and organize my findings?”
Once you identify research sources, you can ask ChatGPT to synthesize dense, lengthy text.
“I have [research, an article, a report, etc.] on [topic], and I’m pasting the relevant text below. Could you provide a concise summary that highlights the key points, main arguments, and important details? Please ensure the summary captures [specific aspects you want to emphasize, e.g., findings, recommendations, or conclusions].”
Automating Tasks To Get More From Meetings
It’s no secret that we’re experiencing a burnout epidemic. But burnout doesn’t result from too much work. It’s from too much tedious, low-value work—that oftentimes we don’t have to do ourselves. AI tools like ChatGPT can handle the most rote parts of any job and help us transform our personal input from hours to minutes.
Take meetings—in 2024, professionals average 14.8 hours a week in meetings, according to Reclaim.ai. That’s almost two full days per week. Meanwhile, another study from Atlassian found that 54% of workers frequently leave meetings without a clear idea of the next steps or who owns which task. ChatGPT can help you reclaim valuable hours and days by making the most of meeting time. You can ask ChatGPT to summarize meeting transcripts (ideally prepared by your favourite AI-powered transcription tool) and generate action points and key takeaways. You can also ask ChatGPT to generate follow-up emails and personalized responses based on a meeting’s discussion. Here’s a prompt to get started.
“I have a transcription from a [Zoom/Teams] meeting, and I need help with the following tasks:
Provide a summary of the key points discussed, including any important action items or takeaways.
Generate a list of action points or tasks that emerged from the meeting.
Help draft follow-up emails, action item lists, or personalized responses based on the discussion.
Here’s the transcription text: [Paste transcription here].”
By leveraging AI tools like ChatGPT for brainstorming, research, and meeting tasks, you can reclaim hours in your day and prioritize work that drives progress.
