10 Ways to Improve Desktop Productivity with GenAI

Maximizing workday efficiency using artificial intelligence

Are you overwhelmed by countless tabs or stuck in the monotony of repetitive tasks? Are you seeking ways to uncover valuable insights hidden within your data? Or perhaps you're aiming to enhance your productivity to the point of leaving work early?

If these challenges resonate with you, you've come to the right place. In this week's newsletter, our focus is to arm you with practical strategies to revolutionize your desktop productivity using GenAI. Let's dive in.

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10 Ways to Increase Productivity with AI

Generative AI is rapidly transforming our work; desktop productivity is no exception. Forget repetitive tasks and information overload – here are ten ways to supercharge your desktop productivity with generative AI:

1. Use Perplexity.ai with the Arc Browser: Ditch the endless tab purgatory! Combine the lightning-fast browsing experience of Arc Browser with the research-boosting power of Perplexity.a i. This winning duo summarizes articles, generate tl;drs, and even writes emails based on webpages, allowing you to conquer your reading list and stay on top of critical information with unprecedented speed and efficiency. Perplexity provides AI search assistance that helps you sort through several search results, giving you a summary and citations to get better answers than clicking through an endless index of links that often only have partial information. Arc Browser with Perplexity.AI as the default search engine.
2. Summarize Data and Gather Insights Quickly: Most of us spend a lot of time reading documents, white papers, and articles, but often, it’d be nice to get the summary before you dive into the document to see if it’s worth your time. I usually upload the document to ChatGPT and ask it for a summary of the key points. Then, I decide if I will read the document or just be happy with the summary. For example, here are the results from uploading the Microsoft 2023 annual report. You can upload the document in ChatGPT Plus and then ask it to summarize the key points. If you don’t get enough detail or want it to expand on the points, you can interview ChatGPT to elicit deeper insights. Summarize Documents and Chat with ChatGPT to Get Insights
3. Create Compelling Presentations: Create stunning presentations that captivate your audience with AI-powered tools like Beautiful.ai , Gamma.App , or Prezi . They can generate creative layouts, suggest visuals, and even write compelling text based on your content. I created a guide on creating presentations.
4. Automate Repetitive Tasks with OpenAI GPT Integrations: Free up your mental energy by automating repetitive tasks with tools like Zapier. These platforms now offer integrations with OpenAI GPTs, allowing you to create powerful automation triggered by natural language instructions. Imagine automatically generating reports, summarizing emails, or updating spreadsheets using simple prompts. I mentioned this in the previous AI Rewind; check it out for more details.
5. AI-powered Project Management with Notion: Stay organized and on top of your projects with Notion , a versatile project management platform that leverages AI features. Notion AI can automate tasks, suggest dependencies and even predict project completion times based on your data, keeping you informed and on track.
6. Learn Prompt Engineering to Maximize GenAI Benefits: Gaining proficiency in prompt engineering is essential for maximizing the potential of generative AI tools in various applications, from creative writing and content generation to technical problem-solving and data analysis. Don’t be alarmed by the word “engineering.” It’s not that hard, and once you understand the concepts, you’ll quickly see the benefits of well-written prompts. By mastering prompt engineering, you can refine your queries to produce more accurate and contextually relevant responses from AI, reducing the need for iterative refinement and saving valuable time.I covered prompt engineering in a previous newslette r.
7. Learn anything fast with ChatGPT:Use ChatGPT or your favorite chatbot to help you learn concepts quickly. In conjunction with ChatGPT, this prompt will teach you virtually any concept in a fraction of the time. Your goal is to demystify complex concepts using innovative and accessible methods. Begin each explanation with a relatable example, real or imagined, to ground the concept in everyday experiences. Strive for simplicity in your language, aiming for brevity without sacrificing clarity—reserve detailed explorations for when students express a need for deeper understanding. If a concept requires prerequisite knowledge, briefly assess the student's familiarity before diving deeper. Always start with an informal, engaging tone to ease any apprehension and clearly outline the concept's relevance and application. Focus on making abstract ideas tangible for below-average college students, ensuring they grasp the practical significance right from the start. Let's begin."
8. Brainstorm Like a Pro: Have you ever tried to come up with a new idea, or do you have a slogan or something you want to say, but you never get it quite right? You can use your favorite chatbot to iterate on something until you get it right. For example, say you wanted a slogan for this newsletter; you know it’s about something for AI in the enterprise, but the words escape you to make it compelling as to why you would want to read it. You could do something like this:Help me write a new slogan for the Artificially Intelligent Enterprise which aims to help users better use AI in business. Iterate 10x.The result looks like this:
9. Generate Images for Virtually Any Usage: With tools like Midjourney and DALL-E, you can create bespoke images for virtually any use. Whether you need captivating visuals for your marketing campaigns or blog posts or even to illustrate complex concepts in presentations, these AI solutions can generate high-quality, relevant images based on textual descriptions. This saves time and sparks creativity, allowing you to visualize previously hard-to-express ideas.
10. Leverage AI Copilots in Your Productivity Suite: Incorporate AI copilots, such as GitHub Copilot for developers or Microsoft's Copilot for Microsoft 365, into your daily workflow to enhance productivity across various tasks. These AI assistants are designed to understand context and assist in real-time, offering suggestions for email drafting in Outlook, automating data analysis in Excel, or even generating code snippets in Visual Studio. For instance, Microsoft's Copilot can summarize lengthy email threads, draft swift responses, create comprehensive PowerPoint presentations from a simple prompt, and automate repetitive Excel tasks through natural language commands. Similarly, GitHub Copilot aids developers by suggesting code completions, writing function stubs, and even generating code comments, significantly speeding up the development process. By harnessing the capabilities of AI copilots within your productivity suite, you can streamline workflows, reduce manual effort, and focus on higher-value tasks. These intelligent assistants boost efficiency and foster innovation by enabling you to tackle complex problems with AI-powered insights and automation.

10x your Efficiency with GenAI Work

Embracing generative AI tools can significantly enhance your productivity and creativity, transforming the way you work. From automating mundane tasks to generating innovative ideas and personalized learning, the potential of AI to boost your efficiency is limitless.

However, blending these tools with your expertise is crucial, using AI as a partner rather than a replacement. Doing so can unlock new opportunities, improve work quality, and perhaps most importantly, find more time to enjoy life outside work. Explore these tools, find what works best for you, and step into a more productive, creative, and balanced future.

Prompt of the Week: Start with Why

Simon Sinek's "Start With Why" framework, introduced in his book "Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action," is a conceptual model that suggests successful organizations and leaders inspire action by clearly articulating the purpose or reason behind what they do. The framework is encapsulated in what Sinek calls the "Golden Circle," which consists of three concentric circles representing "Why," "How," and "What".

If you have never heard Sinek speak, I highly encourage you to watch his Ted Talk; it’s excellent.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qp0HIF3SfI4&t=255s&ab_channel=TED

I did this exercise this week to help with their messaging. Here’s how I used ChatGPT to facilitate the exercise.

Select a company as the subject of your analysis. Ensure you can access sufficient information about its mission, operations, and offerings. You will need to replace [The Concept of a Company] with your concept of the company.

Generalized Description of a Company's Concept:

1. Why - The Purpose: At the core of a company's concept is its purpose or reason for being. This is not just about what product or service the company sells but rather the more profound reason the company exists in the first place. This could involve solving a specific problem, fulfilling a societal need, or contributing to a more significant cause. The company's purpose is its guiding star, informing all strategic decisions and actions. For example, a company might exist to revolutionize the way people connect, aiming to make communication more accessible and meaningful across the globe.
2. How - The Process: This layer outlines the company's unique methods, strategies, or business models to achieve its purpose. It includes innovative processes, proprietary technologies, or distinctive approaches to customer service that set the company apart from its competitors. For instance, a company could leverage cutting-edge technology to create a user-friendly platform that simplifies communication, ensuring privacy and efficiency.
3. What - The Offerings: The outer layer of the company's concept is what the company does tangibly—its products, services, or solutions. These are the manifestations of the company's purpose, created through its unique processes. The offerings are designed to meet the needs or desires of the company's target audience, providing value and fulfilling the company's promise. For example, the company might offer a range of communication tools, from instant messaging apps to video conferencing solutions, designed to cater to various user preferences and needs.

Once you have gathered your information, use this prompt in ChatGPT. You will need to replace [The Concept of a Company] with your concept of the company.

As an experienced organizational leadership expert with a profound understanding of Simon Sinek's 'Golden Circle' theory, your objective is to dissect [The Concept of a Company] with a meticulous lens. This analysis will be grounded in the theory's core principles: 'Why,' 'How,' and 'What.'

Stage 1: Unraveling the 'Why'

Objective: Delve into the company's foundational strategy by exploring its mission, vision, and the inherent purpose fueling its business model.

Tasks:

- Identify the company's core purpose. What problem is it solving for its customers?
- Discuss how the company's 'Why' fosters customer loyalty and brand advocacy.
- Compare the company's mission with its competitors to highlight its unique value proposition.

Stage 2: Decoding the 'How'

Objective: Analyze the company's operational blueprint, focusing on the distinctive methodologies, technologies, and practices that underpin its service delivery.

Tasks:

- Outline the key processes and technologies that differentiate the company from its competitors.
- Evaluate how these strategies support the company's 'Why' and contribute to its success.

Stage 3: Detailing the 'What'

Objective: Enumerate the company's services and products, scrutinizing how these align with and actualize the company's 'Why.'

Tasks:

- List the primary offerings and discuss how they meet customer needs.
- Assess the alignment between these offerings and the company's core purpose.

Applying Insights to Your Business

Objective: Leverage the analysis to create a structured framework for evaluating your business through the 'Golden Circle' lens.

Tasks:

- My Business's 'Why': What is the deep-seated purpose behind your business? Probe into the mission, vision, and motivations driving your business model.
- My Business's 'How': Describe the unique strategies, technologies, and processes that underpin your business operations. How do these elements bolster your 'Why'?
- My Business's 'What': Catalog the products or services your business offers. Explain how these connect back to your 'Why' and 'How'.

Tailored Advice:

Utilize the insights derived from the analysis to offer customized advice. Draw comparisons to the strategies of [The Concept of a Company] and identify opportunities for growth and improvement in your business. Provide specific, actionable recommendations that align with your business's 'Why,' optimize the 'How,' and enhance the 'What.'

Constraints:

- Maintain specificity to [The Concept of a Company] without generalizing across different business models.
- Avoid technical jargon that might confuse a non-specialist audience.
- Incorporate industry comparisons for context, keeping the primary focus on the company in question.
- Highlight both strengths and potential areas for innovation or improvement within the company.