What are you trying to do?
Name the action, the goal and why it matters.
THE LEARNING CENTER · KEY IDEAS
Better context.
More useful work.
Simple habits for getting a useful first draft—and knowing what to check.
SIMPLE TEST
What would someone need to know to do this well?
If a teammate would need certain information to do the task well, ChatGPT probably needs it too.
Start there. Explain the job, provide the relevant information and describe the result you need. A model can work with your brief, but it cannot reliably fill in facts you have not supplied.
Return to your practice task.
If a teammate were helping with this task, what would they need to know before producing a useful first draft?
TASK · CONTEXT · EXPECTATION
Give a brief someone can work from.
What information should ChatGPT use?
Provide background, files, sources, examples, audience, constraints or goals.
What would a good response look like?
Provide the format, tone, length, sections, criteria or an approved example.
Example: a missed project meeting
Task: Draft an email.
Context: It is for a colleague who missed today’s project meeting and needs the key decisions. Use the actual meeting notes I provide.
Expectation: Use three bullets, a warm tone and a clear next step. Mark missing owners or deadlines for me to confirm.
WORKING WITH FILES
Give it something useful to work from.
A file provides context. Your instructions explain what to do with it.
| File type | What ChatGPT can do | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Summarize key findings, risks and recommended actions. | Check the summary against the report; separate its recommendations from new suggestions. |
| Spreadsheet | Identify trends, outliers or questions to investigate. | Check units, time periods, missing values, formulas and totals. |
| Policy | Turn requirements into a checklist or quick-reference guide. | Check the current version, scope, exceptions and exact wording of requirements. |
| Meeting notes | Pull out decisions, owners and action items. | Confirm names and deadlines; flag anything the notes leave unresolved. |
| Template / past example | Rewrite a draft to follow the same structure and tone. | Carry over the format, not old facts, names or commitments. |
| Draft document | Suggest edits, identify gaps or adapt it for a different audience. | Confirm that edits preserve the intended meaning and factual claims. |
Point to the relevant material.
Name the file, sheet, section or date. Explain which source takes priority if files conflict. Ask for page, section or cell references where available so you can check the result.
Try this: “Use the attached report. List the five main findings, the evidence for each and any unanswered questions. Include page references where available. Flag unreadable or missing material.”
FILES OR WEB SEARCH?
Use your files.
Search for what has changed.
Files help ChatGPT work with materials you already have. Search when you need current or external information.
Use web search when you need
- Recent information
- Public facts or examples
- Answers based on trusted sources
- Links or citations
- Information that may have changed over time
Put the results to work
- Bring in source material before drafting
- Compare options against clear criteria
- Gather background on a topic
- Find recent examples
- Check public facts against the original source
Search brings information. You bring judgment.
Search means web search: checking information online. It helps bring material into the conversation so ChatGPT can summarize, compare, explain or draft from it. Open the source, check its date and confirm it supports the claim.
Compare options: “Search the providers’ official websites for current information. Compare the options using these criteria. Link to each source, include the date checked and flag anything you could not verify.”
How to get better search results
Ask a clear question and say what kind of sources or output you need. ChatGPT can bring current sources into the conversation for you to review.
Find useful examples: “Use search to find credible, recent examples of how people use AI at work. Summarize the examples in simple terms and include links to the sources.”
Check what changed: “Use search to check the latest guidance on [topic]. Summarize what changed, cite the sources, and tell me what I should verify before using the information.”
Add a date range, location or industry when it matters. Ask for official sources where possible, and check that the linked pages support the answer.
USE THESE ON YOUR NEXT TASK
Small habits. Better first drafts.
Name the job.
Start with an action and a purpose. Draft, compare, extract, explain or organize. Keep the first request focused enough to check.
Try this
“Draft a follow-up email that confirms the decisions in these meeting notes.”
Give it the same brief you would give a teammate.
Include the background, audience, goal, constraints and relevant sources. Explain details that would otherwise be easy to misunderstand.
Try this
“The reader missed the meeting. They need the decisions, their responsibilities and the next deadline.”
Use the source, not your memory of it.
Provide the actual policy, order record, notes or approved document. For current facts, use web search and open the authoritative source.
Try this
“Use the attached policy dated October 1. Identify the section supporting each answer.”
Define what good looks like.
Specify the format, length, tone and required content. A useful output can be judged against a few clear criteria.
Try this
“Use three bullets, a warm tone and a clear next step. Keep it under 150 words.”
Show one useful example.
An approved example can explain your preferred style or structure. Tell the model which features to follow and which details must change.
Try this
“Follow this example’s format. Use only the facts in the new notes; do not reuse its names or figures.”
Make missing information visible.
Ask the model to flag gaps and conflicts. Give it permission to ask a question or leave a placeholder when a needed fact is absent.
Try this
“If an owner or date is missing, mark it [confirm]. Do not invent it.”
Separate facts from suggestions.
A plausible recommendation is not a recorded decision. Keep source-backed facts, assumptions and proposed next steps distinct.
Try this
“Label each item as a recorded decision, an open question or a suggested next step.”
Check the date and scope.
A source can be real and still be outdated or irrelevant. Check the version, location, customer, product and time period before relying on it.
Try this
“Which source version and date does this answer use? Flag anything that needs a current check.”
Break complicated work into reviewable steps.
Extract the facts first, review them, then draft or analyze. Smaller steps make errors easier to find before they spread.
Try this
“First list the decisions and action items from the notes. Wait for my review before drafting the email.”
Review with CLEAR.
Check Complete, Logical, Evidence, Audience and Relevant. Open the cited sources and confirm they support the claims. Recheck important figures.
Try this
“Compare this draft with the brief. List missing requirements, unsupported claims and anything that does not fit the audience.”
Revise one problem at a time.
Tell the model what needs changing and what is already working. Specific feedback is easier to act on than “make it better.”
Try this
“Keep the three decisions unchanged. Shorten the introduction and make the next step more specific.”
Use approved tools and appropriate information.
Follow your organization’s rules for customer, employee and confidential records. Share the information needed for the task, with the right access controls.
Try this
“Use this approved, redacted sample to develop the template before working with live records.”
Keep consequential actions under review.
A draft is different from sending a message, changing a record or approving a payment. Decide which actions need an authorized person’s approval.
Try this
“Prepare the customer reply and show the supporting order record. Wait for approval before sending.”
Test the awkward cases.
Try missing fields, conflicting records, unusual requests and outdated sources. A useful workflow should handle exceptions or route them to a person.
Try this
“What happens if these notes contain two different deadlines? Show the conflict instead of choosing silently.”
Measure useful work, not just speed.
Track the time saved alongside accuracy, review effort and rework. A faster draft is valuable when it helps someone finish the job well.
Try this
“Record drafting time, checking time and corrections for this task before and after using AI.”
Keep the source of truth outside the chat.
Save approved decisions in the system your team uses: the CRM, document library, ticket or accounting record. Assign someone to keep it current.
Try this
“After approval, record the final decisions in the project document and link back to the meeting notes.”
PUT ONE IDEA TO WORK
Return to your own task.
- Write the task in one sentence.
- List what a teammate would need to know. Gather those sources.
- Describe a good response: audience, format and required details.
- Ask for a first draft, with missing information flagged.
- Review with CLEAR: Complete, Logical, Evidence, Audience, Relevant.
One useful prompt
“Before drafting, identify any missing information that would materially change the answer. Ask me for it, or use a clearly marked placeholder.”
Sources and further reading
PUT IT TO WORK
What should we build for you?
Bring one bottleneck. We’ll discuss the sources, the system and the business case.