Tips · Productivity
10 ways to be more productive with AI
Ten practical ways to save time with ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini — from meeting notes and email drafts to research, planning and recurring tasks — with example prompts.
AI assistants save the most time on work you already do every week. These ten habits work in ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini, and each comes with a prompt you can adapt.
1. Turn meeting notes into actions
Paste rough notes or a transcript and ask for decisions, owners and deadlines.
“From these notes, list the decisions made, then a table of action items with owner and due date. Flag anything that was left unresolved.”
2. Draft emails in your own voice
Give the assistant two or three emails you have written so it can match your tone, then describe what you need to say.
“Using the style of the examples above, write a short reply declining the meeting and proposing two times next week.”
3. Ask a long document specific questions
Instead of “summarise this”, ask what you actually need to know.
“In this 40-page contract, what are the termination terms, the renewal date and any penalties? Quote the relevant clauses.”
4. Plan your week
Share your priorities and fixed commitments and ask for a realistic plan.
“Here are my deadlines and meetings for next week. Build a day-by-day plan with focus blocks, and tell me what won’t fit.”
5. Research faster, then verify
Use research modes to gather sources quickly, then open the citations before relying on the result.
“Research the current pricing of project-management tools for a 10-person team. Cite every figure with a link.”
6. Save your best prompts
Stop retyping instructions. Use custom instructions in ChatGPT, projects in Claude or Gems in Gemini to store context about your role, audience and preferred formats.
7. Clean up spreadsheets
Assistants can explain formulas, restructure messy data and spot inconsistencies.
“This sheet mixes date formats and duplicate customer names. Explain how to clean it and write the formulas I need.”
8. Go hands-free when you’re away from your desk
Use voice mode on your phone to think out loud on a walk, then ask for a structured summary of what you said.
“I’m going to talk through ideas for the Q4 campaign. Afterwards, organise them into themes and next steps.”
9. Learn something new with a tutor
Ask the assistant to teach step by step and to check your understanding.
“Teach me pivot tables in five short lessons. After each one, give me a small exercise and check my answer.”
10. Automate the recurring work
Look for scheduled tasks and agent features that run on their own — a Monday summary of industry news, or a weekly reminder built from your to-do list — so the assistant does the routine work before you ask.
One rule for all ten
AI output is a first draft. Check facts, figures and anything you send in your name, and keep confidential information on plans your organisation approves.
Want to pick the right tool first? Read our ChatGPT vs Claude vs Gemini comparison, or see which AI personal assistant fits the way you work.
Frequently asked questions
Which AI assistant is best for productivity?
ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini all handle these tasks well. Gemini fits people who work in Gmail and Google Docs, Claude suits long documents and careful writing, and ChatGPT is a strong all-rounder. Use whichever connects to the apps you already use.
Is it safe to paste work documents into an AI assistant?
Check your employer's policy first. Business and Enterprise plans from OpenAI, Anthropic and Google offer admin controls and different data-handling terms from consumer plans, so use those for confidential material.
How do I get better answers from an AI assistant?
Give context (who it is for and why), be specific about the format you want, include an example, and ask follow-up questions to refine the result rather than starting again.
