Week after week, news comes in about how a tsunami of apps can change our daily lives. You may find it fun, interesting, overwhelming or even all of these at once.
Globally, the adoption of GPT chat is dizzying and offers endless possibilities for each of us. However, to use it effectively, we need to develop subtle but fundamental skills. Although you may find that it is being used recurrently in your work environment today, in other contexts it has not yet reached the same speed of adoption and the gap is noticeable.
GPT chat in Argentina
Thinking back a bit, in Argentina, where I am writing from, when the GPT chat was launched, we were busy with the World Cup. While the world was debating between continuing to use the Google search engine or trying out the new GPT chat interface, we were focused on cheering on our players to get the third star on our football shirt. But it’s never too late to join the debate.
If you are part of the ‘Google it’ team, you know that your search engine is a powerful tool. The motto is clear: to find, we must know what to look for and how to formulate our queries. The key skill here is how, with magnifying glass in hand, to find information in a universe of links full of possibilities.
With the advent of conversational artificial intelligences such as GPT chat, the game changes. This new generation of technology allows us to interact more naturally with machines. Over the years, we have become experts in search, but now we have to develop other skills. Upskilling takes us from actively seeking information to directly asking the AI, almost as if we were conversing with another person. So it turns out that the key skill now is to ask relevant questions and understand the answers, which, while seemingly simple, is a challenge.
The previous generation (search engines) focused on learning how to search and filter information. The current generation (AI with language) is focused on learning how to ask effective questions and understand the answers. The transition from searching to asking reflects a shift towards a more natural and conversational interaction with technology.
How to talk with GPT chat?
If you are a bit shy or if you still find it boring to sit and ask the chat. Here are a couple of recommendations that can sharpen and improve the outcome. In this wave of generative language there are some twists and turns that can make your interaction more effective for you.
Assign a role: Imagine you’re choosing the grill – is it going to be the ‘Grill Editor’ or the ‘Fire Analyst’? your choice, my friend.
Context: The boring but necessary part: are we in the office, on a secret mission or at a 90s costume party? It helps to frame what you’re looking for.
The task: The mission: tell your superhero what to do: write a report, save the world or find the best holiday book?
Example or reference: Find an example. A map so you don’t get lost in the jungle. Remember when Indiana Jones found the Holy Grail? Well, something like that.
Delivery format: Decide how you want to receive the information:
In a table, in short paragraphs or with emojis? Whatever you like best!
Tone of communication: The style of the hero: Do you want him to talk to you like Captain America or Lady Whistledown? Formal, friendly or with emojis – whatever you need!
And finally, one of the most disruptive ways is to be able to ask the AI directly, ‘What do you need to know in order to help me with a specific topic?’ Within seconds, we will have a complete guide of steps to make the final product more precise. There seems to be no single answer, but it certainly helps to be clear, effective and add your personal touch.
Today, generative artificial intelligence offers us endless possibilities and constantly surprises us with its advances and superpowers. Somehow, we can ask limitless questions and carry out actions that were unthinkable before.
New technologies present us with great challenges. The attitudes and skills we need to face them drive us to continue learning throughout our lives. One of the best ways to bridge gaps and use technology to our advantage may be to network and consult or share with people close to us to expand our possibilities.
These technologies also transform the way we learn, access, share and interpret information. Using that information efficiently is key to enhancing the human experience in an ever-changing world.
And to paraphrase the writer Mario Benedetti, Perhaps just when we thought we had all the answers at hand, now we have changed all the questions, and our universe has expanded.
