I was at dinner with my husband in Paris. We got a wine list and all the names were, of course, in French. Barry wanted something on par with Napa Cabernet, so I took a picture of the menu and asked ChatGPT. Within seconds he recommended wine. I double checked with the waiter and he gave me the thumbs up.
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You could the AI thinks is only for companies, developers or ultra smart professionals, but it is not. It is intended for everyone who wants to try it.
AI EXPERT: CHATGPT QUESTIONS YOU’LL WANT TO KNOW ABOUT BEFORE
Instead of ignoring this powerful tool, make this the year you embrace AI. It’s easier and more useful than you think.
Let’s start with the basics
“So, uh, where can I find ChatGPT?” I get that in my email every day. Use it on the web or download it for iPhone or Android.
The free tier works for most people. I pay $20 a month for ChatGPT Plus. For me it’s worth it because of the access to better features and faster response times. Get started with free. If you regularly rely on your favorite AI tool, consider upgrading. It’s worth thinking about.
The picture shows a man working on a plane and using a mobile phone. (iStock)
ChatGPT is not the only option, but it is my preference (at least for now) and the most popular. You can try Google Gemini, Confusion and Claude.
With all of these, the workflow is the same. Think about it like Googlebut instead of typing in a single search term and scrolling through the results, you have a “conversation” with the bot to get you exactly what you want.
Like any other tool, you need to use AI wisely and triple check its results. Trust me, you don’t want to end up like those lawyers who used AI to draft court documents, only to have the judge catch glaring mistakes.
BIOMETRIC DATA: IS IT SAFE TO GIVE THEM TO ANY COMPANY THAT REQUIRES IT?
You’ve heard of instructions, right?
This is what we call a text, question or command that you give to an AI system to guide its response or action. It’s your indication of what you want, so the better your query, the more useful and accurate the answer will be.
“Priming” is an insider term for telling a chatbot exactly what you want from it. With ChatGPT or any other, the more restrictions you give, the better your response. Examples: “Limit your answer to 250 words,” “Give me a bulleted list,” “Formulate the results as a table,” “Use this data to make a bar chart.”
Remember, AI can’t read your mind. He only knows what you tell him. Use the “make” and “don’t” in your queries to get the results you want. Let’s say you’re cooking for friends and some of them have allergies. Say, “Make a recipe for six people. make include proteins, fruits, vegetables and carbohydrates. don’t include dairy products, shellfish or nuts.”
Close-up of the ChatGPT logo icon of an artificial intelligence chatbot application on a mobile phone screen. (iStock)
7 tips for an easier life
Make your goals actionable: “I have a goal of 2025 [fill in the blank]. Can you help me make it SMART?” (SMART is an acronym for Specific, Measurable, Assignable, Realistic and Time Related.) Maybe you’re not there yet. Try this: “I want [fill in the blank]but I feel overwhelmed and don’t know where to start. Can you help me by breaking it down into more manageable tasks?”
“Give me 10 more examples”: It’s a query I use all the time with ChatGPT to make the chatbot a better brainstorming buddy. Some of his “ideas” are downright bad, but it might spark something creative in your brain, too.
“How can I make this better?” Add anything you’ve written—a blog post, a travel itinerary, a resume, or even a heartfelt email. This prompt does wonders for refining your work and pointing out improvements, like a personal editor at your fingertips.
DO THIS WITH YOUR FAMILY VIDEOS BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE
Your own free assistant: Let’s say you have messy meeting notes. You would spend 15 minutes manually turning them into an email that suits your boss or team. Instead, open up a chatbot and say, “Turn these notes into professional, friendly email to my team.” Paste your notes at the end and voila. Professional advice: Ask your bot of choice, “Is there anything that needs more detail?” to fill in the missing information.
Shortcut to inbox: When you get a really long email, open your AI chatbot of choice and type the prompt: “Summarize this email for me. Tell me what to do, then write a thoughtful response. Here’s the email.” Paste your email and let AI do its magic.
Want to get in shape? Ask your artificial intelligence to create a customized fitness plan. Try this: “Create a 30-day fitness plan for fat loss and muscle gain tailored to a [male/female] beginner in [your age].” Or be specific: “Create a four-week fitness plan that will help me run a mile for the first time.” Don’t worry.
A 12-year-old boy types while using a laptop on December 19, 2023 in Bath, England. (Matt Cardy/Getty Images)
Spouse forgot to fill the dishes again? Instead of firing off a text full of rage, let artificial intelligence step in. Ask your favorite chatbot to reframe your frustration into something a little more… constructive. I like this prompt: “Make this message sound friendlier.”
Don’t forget about privacy
It’s easy to think of your bot as a trusted ally, especially when it’s been spewing out helpful answers all day. But definitely not. It is a data collection tool like any other.
You talk smart. Never enter passwords, sensitive financial information, or confidential business or business information. My rule of thumb: don’t tell a chatbot anything you wouldn’t want to be public.
With a free ChatGPT or Perplexity account, you can turn off memory features in the app’s settings that remember everything you type. Google Gemini requires a paid account to do this.
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