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Time-saving hacks with ChatGPT

by Mel Kettle, Leadership Communication Expert

Connect with Mel

There has been a lot in the media recently about the perils and pitfalls of using AI technology such as ChatGPT. What isn’t talked about as often, is how brilliant it can be when used as a productivity hack.

ChatGPT, if you’re wondering, is an AI-driven language processing tool that allows you to have a human-like conversation with a chatbot. It is similar to Google, in that you ask it for information. However, where a search engine will give you a list of websites to find the information you seek, ChatGPT uses the information on the websites to give you a response.

When it comes to my day job, I’ve been using ChatGPT for idea generation, to draft newsletters, re-write dull copy, streamline daily and weekly planning, create templates, and more.

I also use it a lot to help me save time with basic and often boring household chores, such as meal planning and asking for recipe ideas using the random ingredients in my fridge.

However, as with all new things, there is a learning curve. And its success depends a lot on the instructions or commands you feed into it. Full disclosure, it’s not always accurate, so always double-check the facts before using the answers provided.

For ChatGPT to be at its most effective, you need to provide it with a persona, context, and a task. For example, I recently asked it to ‘give me three recipes to use up ricotta and baby spinach (the task), to feed two adults (the persona)’. I forgot to add the context – make them vegetarian – which I realised when the first recipe was for spinach and ricotta stuffed chicken breasts. Delicious, but not helpful when I had no chicken and no interest in going to a supermarket that afternoon to purchase some.

1. Meal planning

ChatGPT is fantastic for helping me work out what to cook, based on the ingredients in my fridge. It’s also great for working out weekly meal plans using some of our standard ingredients, but with a slightly different tweak. For example, when I asked ChatGPT, ‘What are five recipes using chicken thigh fillets, that all have a different flavour profile?’ I was given recipes for dishes including lemon garlic, Thai red curry, honey mustard, Mediterranean chicken, and Korean-style sticky chicken. YUM!

2. Grocery shopping

I take my meal plan and ask for a grocery list to take to the supermarket, or plug into my online shopping app.

3. Holiday planning

By the time you read this I will have returned from a week in Singapore. ChatGPT helped me find great places to visit, to eat and drink at, and provided me with packing lists so I wouldn’t forget any of the essentials.

4. Health and wellness

I’m trying to do more basic stretching at home, and ChatGPT has given me a set of exercises to do, focusing on a pulled quad muscle and sore hip flexors.

5. Creating to-do lists

I find this useful if I’m doing something new. A lot of my friends are currently using ChatGPT to find out how to care for elderly parents. I asked it, ‘What are the things I need to consider and do in order to find a nursing home for my 83-year-old mother to move into?” and it gave me an extremely thorough list to consider.

6. Brainstorming activities to do with my partner or kids

Like many couples who have been together for ages, it’s easy to do the same things again and again. I asked ChatGPT for 10 low-cost free activity ideas for date nights. I told it our ages and where we live, and it gave me some fabulous suggestions (although at least half of them would need to be done during the day).

7. Writing tricky emails

While I haven’t personally used it for this yet, a friend of mine has. She had to write a reply to a nasty email from an ex and asked ChatGPT to re-write her very sweary draft 😀

Are you using ChatGPT as a time-saving tool?

I’d love to know how.

Mel Kettle

Photo of author and speaker, Mel Kettle, leaning against a wall.

About the author

Mel Kettle is an internationally recognised expert in fully connected leadership and communication. With more than two decades of experience, Mel is a valuable asset to leaders and teams that want to achieve real connection and sustained engagement. She is the host of the podcast, This Connected Life, and the author of two books, the best-selling Fully Connected and The Social Association.

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