ChatGPT is most useful when you stop thinking of it as a chatbot and start thinking of it as a very fast, patient assistant. Give it a small everyday job, and it will save you time or effort or both.
Here are ten of the most useful jobs to give it, with a prompt you can copy, a follow-up that makes the answer better, and a note on what still deserves a second look.
Key Takeaways
- ✓ChatGPT is at its best on small, ordinary jobs: drafting, planning, comparing, summarising.
- ✓Every good prompt has three parts: what you want, useful context, and how you want the answer.
- ✓Always follow up. The second reply is almost always better than the first.
- ✓Verify anything time-sensitive, like prices, opening hours or medical detail, with an official source.
1. Writing emails
What ChatGPT can help with: drafting, shortening, softening or firming up any email you have to send.
Example prompt: Write a short, friendly email to my strata manager asking when the pool will reopen after the recent repairs. Keep it polite and under 80 words.
Useful follow-up: Rewrite it slightly more formal, and add a sentence thanking them for the update they sent last month.
What to double-check: Names, dates, and any specific claim about what was agreed. If you are pasting in an original email to reply to, remove personal details first.
For a deeper look, see [how to write better emails with ChatGPT](/guides/write-better-emails-with-chatgpt).
2. Planning holidays
What ChatGPT can help with: brainstorming destinations, drafting itineraries, suggesting activities for the people you are travelling with.
Example prompt: Suggest a relaxed five-day itinerary in and around Port Douglas for two adults in their sixties who enjoy good food, gentle walks and one snorkelling day. We prefer boutique accommodation.
Useful follow-up: Now add a rest day in the middle, and suggest one restaurant per evening across a range of prices.
What to double-check: Opening hours, prices, tour availability, transport schedules and any travel warnings. Confirm with the operator or an official source.
Full walk-through in [how to plan a holiday with ChatGPT](/guides/plan-a-holiday-with-chatgpt).
3. Meal planning
What ChatGPT can help with: turning what is already in the fridge or pantry into a plan for the week.
Example prompt: Plan five easy weeknight dinners for two, using chicken thighs, tinned tomatoes and whatever green vegetables are in season in Australia in August. Keep each recipe under 30 minutes.
Useful follow-up: Now give me one shopping list that covers all five meals, grouped by aisle.
What to double-check: Any dietary needs. Say up front if someone is coeliac, diabetic, on blood thinners, or avoids specific foods for medical reasons.
4. Shopping comparisons
What ChatGPT can help with: comparing two options you have already found, once you paste in the details.
Example prompt: I am choosing between two washing machines. I will paste the specs below. Please give me a plain-English comparison and tell me what is likely to matter most for a household of two.
Useful follow-up: Now suggest five questions I should ask the salesperson before I buy.
What to double-check: ChatGPT may be able to search for current stock, prices or delivery information, but always confirm those details directly with the retailer before buying.
5. Understanding complicated information
What ChatGPT can help with: turning dense letters, contracts or explanations into plain English.
Example prompt: Explain this letter from my superannuation fund in plain language. Tell me what, if anything, I am being asked to do, and by when. (Paste the letter, with your name and account number removed.)
Useful follow-up: List three sensible questions I could ask my fund before I make a decision.
What to double-check: For anything financial, legal or medical, use the explanation as background reading and then talk to a qualified professional.
6. Making lists and plans
What ChatGPT can help with: turning a vague intention into a clear, ordered plan.
Example prompt: Help me plan a small 70th birthday lunch for 12 people at home in Adelaide in October. Give me a task list starting eight weeks out.
Useful follow-up: Add a simple table for the food, showing what can be made ahead versus on the day.
What to double-check: Any assumptions it makes about venues, suppliers or costs.
7. Learning something new
What ChatGPT can help with: explaining a new topic at your level, and pacing itself as you follow up.
Example prompt: I know almost nothing about ETFs. Explain what they are, how they differ from managed funds, and the main things a cautious investor should understand. Use plain English and no jargon.
Useful follow-up: Now give me a short glossary of ten terms I will keep running into.
What to double-check: Investment specifics change. Speak to a licensed financial adviser before acting.
8. Brainstorming ideas
What ChatGPT can help with: getting past a blank page. Gift ideas, hobbies, hobbies for a housebound friend, weekend ideas, family activities.
Example prompt: Suggest ten thoughtful gift ideas under $80 for my sister-in-law who loves gardening, reading, and cooking, and lives in a small apartment.
Useful follow-up: Now suggest five that would work well as an experience rather than an object.
What to double-check: Availability and current pricing.
9. Hobbies and personal projects
What ChatGPT can help with: structuring a project, from writing a short family history to learning watercolour to running a small book club.
Example prompt: Help me start a monthly book club for six friends. Suggest a light structure for our first three meetings, and three novels we might read that spark good conversation without being too heavy.
Useful follow-up: Now suggest six discussion questions for the first book.
What to double-check: Book titles and authors. Ask for well-known, widely available titles to reduce the chance of it inventing one.
10. Household organisation
What ChatGPT can help with: decluttering plans, cleaning routines, a maintenance calendar, packing for a move.
Example prompt: Build me a simple monthly home maintenance calendar for a three-bedroom house in Adelaide, covering things like gutters, smoke alarms, service reminders and seasonal jobs.
Useful follow-up: Turn it into a printable one-page checklist grouped by season.
What to double-check: Anything safety-related, like smoke alarm regulations or electrical work, against the relevant authority.
Getting more out of every prompt
Across all ten of these, the same pattern makes the answers better:
- 1.Say what you want.
- 2.Give useful context.
- 3.Say how you want the answer.
- 4.Keep the conversation going.
Our guide on [how to write better AI prompts](/guides/how-to-write-better-ai-prompts) walks through that four-step formula with ten more examples.
What to try next
- •New to ChatGPT? Start with [ChatGPT for beginners](/guides/chatgpt-for-beginners).
- •Want to sharpen your prompts? See [how to write better AI prompts](/guides/how-to-write-better-ai-prompts).
- •Take the free 3-minute AIQ Quiz to see where you sit and what to try first.
Example prompts to try
- Turn this fridge and pantry list into three easy dinners for two. (Paste the list.)
- Help me plan a simple 70th birthday lunch for 12 people at home, starting eight weeks out.
- Explain this letter from my health fund in plain language and tell me if I need to reply.
Safety Notes
- •Remove personal identifiers from any document before pasting it in.
- •Verify anything time-sensitive, like prices, opening hours, medical guidance or legal detail, with an official source.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to pay for ChatGPT to do these things?
No. Every example in this guide works on the free version of ChatGPT.
Can I paste in personal emails and letters?
You can, but remove personal details first, like full names, addresses, account numbers, phone numbers and dates of birth. Replace them with placeholders such as 'my sister' or 'the address'.
Will ChatGPT remember what I asked yesterday?
ChatGPT remembers context within the current conversation. Depending on your settings, Memory may also allow it to use information from previous conversations; you can review or disable Memory in Settings.
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