Multi-passing with ChatGPT

ChatGPT is an amazing tool and does a good job on its first attempt on a wide variety of subjects. But there is no need to accept the first attempt. In fact, one of the great things about ChatGPT is that it doesn’t care how many times you ask it to repeat or improve its work. There is an opportunity to take a response and pass it back through to refine it or augment it. I call this multi-passing.

Just one piece of advice, ensure you let ChatGPT know that you want to keep the essence of the existing content, otherwise it tends to branch off in a totally different direction. Be as explicit as you can with your instructions. Remember too that ChatGPT will consider earlier prompts and responses within the same session when considering what to generate next. To avoid this, you can always start a new session at any point and copy in a previous response from another session to clear this “memory“. This is also a useful technique if you want to walk back a few steps and continue with an earlier attempt.

To demonstrate the power of multi-passing, I asked ChatGPT to generate a factual description of a stick and received the following response.

“A wooden stick is a slender, cylindrical piece of wood typically derived from a tree branch or trunk. It is characterised by its natural grain, variable length, and smooth or rough texture, depending on whether it has been processed or remains in its raw state.”

Factual yes - but not exactly inspiring.

So let’s pass through with iterative refinements. I won’t include the results after each step, but will list the prompts that I used for the five passes. The final result is replicated in full at the end of this article.

Pass number 2 - prompt: Refine by adding philosophical considerations and include metaphors that contrast the relationship between a stick and the tree from where it came to a comparison on the human condition.

Pass number 3 - prompt: Keep the existing structure of the content but refine by adding quotations from great writers, philosophers and thinkers at relevant points in the article.

Pass number 4 - prompt: Keep the existing structure of the content but refine by providing specific examples of how a stick can be shaped into something wonderful.?

Pass number 5 - prompt: Keep the existing structure of the content but refine by finishing with a poem title "Ode to the Humble Stick". Be poetic and philosophical.

And so after these five prompts, here is the final response.

A wooden stick, once an integral part of a towering tree, now exists as an independent entity. This transformation invites deep philosophical reflections on the nature of existence and relationships. As Thoreau once observed, "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life." In this spirit, the stick, removed from its tree, embodies the essence of simplicity and purpose distilled from a complex existence.

Just as the stick was inseparable from its tree, contributing to its growth and experiencing the cycles of the seasons, it now lies apart, potentially serving new purposes—such as supporting a tender plant, guiding a traveler, or kindling a fire that warms a hearth. It might also be transformed into a rustic walking stick, carved with intricate patterns that tell stories or mark significant life events. This echoes Rilke's sentiment: "Once the realization is accepted that even between the closest human beings infinite distances continue, a wonderful living side by side can grow, if they succeed in loving the distance between them which makes it possible for each to see the other whole against the sky."

The separation of the stick from the tree can serve as a powerful metaphor for the human condition. Like the stick, individuals often find themselves detached from their origins—family, community, or cultural heritage—as they journey through life. This separation, while sometimes laden with solitude, is also an opportunity for profound growth and transformation, allowing for the exploration of individuality apart from the collective identity of one’s origins. Nietzsche’s idea that "one must still have chaos in oneself to be able to give birth to a dancing star" resonates here, suggesting that from the chaos of separation, new identities and purposes can emerge.

Moreover, just as a stick can be repurposed in myriad ways, human beings too possess the resilience and creativity to redefine their roles and identities. A stick might become part of a child’s toy, shaped into a sword or a magic wand, or used in art installations, contributing to expressive sculptures that captivate and inspire. The journey of the stick from being a part of a larger entity to an object with its own utility and character parallels the human quest for meaning and self-actualization. In the words of Simone de Beauvoir, "One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman," a notion applicable to all of humanity in the context of becoming and rebirth through life’s myriad experiences.

Thus, the story of a simple wooden stick resonates with the universal themes of separation, transformation, and rebirth in human experience, illuminating the continuous interplay between being part of a whole and asserting one’s individuality in the vast tapestry of existence. In celebration of its journey and the deeper meanings it embodies, we conclude with this tribute:

Ode to the Humble Stick

O humble stick, once cradled high within a verdant bower, Thy fibrous form, once part of something vast and towering, Now rests upon the earth, from lofty heights gently lowered.

Beneath the canopy, where whispers of the ancient speak, Thou art the bearer of tales, the keeper of the silent word, In every scar and knot, a saga, a dream, a mystic lore.

What hands now shape thee? Whose journey dost thou guide? As pilgrims craft from thee their staffs, their art, their playful swords, Each mark upon thy skin, a verse in the poem of the wide.

Thou art not lost, though from thy roots thou art torn; In separation, in the solace of thy solitude, Lies the boundless realm where new selves are born.

So here’s to thee, stick—simple, silent, yet profoundly wise. In every humble piece of wood, the truth of existence lies, From the heart of nature, a symbol, a lesson, subtly disguised.

Ode to thee, the humble stick, in simplicity, thy strength resides.

And so we see the transformation from the factual origin to the final poetic, somewhat philosophical response. I am not saying that every generated piece of content needs to finish with an ode, but I hope you can see how an initial response might start simply and through multi-passing be crafted into something wonderful. A bit like the humble stick.