The hardest part of using ChatGPT at work is knowing what to ask. Here are 25 tested prompts organized by common work scenarios. Copy them directly — they also work great with Claude and Gemini.
Email & Communication (1-7)
- Professional email draft: "Write a professional email to [recipient] about [topic]. Tone should be [formal/friendly/diplomatic]. Key points to include: [list]. Keep it under 150 words."
- Difficult conversation email: "Help me write a respectful email addressing [issue] with [person/team]. I want to be direct but not confrontational. The desired outcome is [what you want]."
- Meeting summary: "I'll paste my meeting notes. Please create a clean summary with: 1) Key decisions made, 2) Action items with owners, 3) Open questions, 4) Next steps."
- Decline an invitation: "Write a polite email declining [invitation/request] from [person]. I want to maintain the relationship and suggest an alternative if appropriate."
- Follow-up email: "Write a follow-up email to [person] about [previous conversation]. It's been [time period]. Be professional but not pushy."
- Status update: "Help me write a weekly status update for my manager covering: Completed: [list]. In progress: [list]. Blocked: [list]. Keep it concise."
- Thank you note: "Write a genuine thank-you email to [person] for [what they did]. Make it personal, not generic."
Analysis & Strategy (8-14)
- SWOT analysis: "Create a SWOT analysis for [business/product/decision]. Consider industry trends, competitor actions, and internal capabilities."
- Decision framework: "I need to decide between [Option A] and [Option B]. Create a comparison matrix with criteria: cost, timeline, risk, impact, and effort. Then recommend which to choose and why."
- Problem diagnosis: "Our [metric] has dropped by [amount] over [time period]. Help me brainstorm possible causes, starting with the most likely. For each cause, suggest how to verify if it's the real problem."
- Competitor analysis: "Analyze [competitor company] vs our company [name]. Compare: product features, pricing, market positioning, strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities we can exploit."
- Process improvement: "Here's our current process for [task]: [describe steps]. Identify bottlenecks, redundancies, and suggest improvements. Estimate time saved."
- Risk assessment: "We're planning to [initiative]. List the top 10 risks, rate each by probability and impact (high/medium/low), and suggest mitigation strategies."
- Quarterly goals: "Help me set quarterly OKRs for [role/team]. Context: [describe current priorities and challenges]. Make them specific, measurable, and achievable."
Content & Presentations (15-20)
- Presentation outline: "Create an outline for a [duration]-minute presentation about [topic] for [audience]. Include an engaging opening, 3-5 key points with supporting evidence, and a strong conclusion."
- Blog post draft: "Write a [word count]-word blog post about [topic] targeting [audience]. Include an attention-grabbing intro, practical tips, and a CTA. SEO keyword: [keyword]."
- LinkedIn post: "Write a LinkedIn post about [topic/experience]. Make it personal and value-driven, not self-promotional. Include a hook in the first line. Under 200 words."
- Report executive summary: "I'll paste a report. Write a 3-paragraph executive summary highlighting: key findings, implications, and recommended actions."
- Case study: "Help me write a customer case study. Client: [name]. Challenge: [problem]. Solution: [what we did]. Results: [outcomes]. Make it compelling but factual."
- Training material: "Create training content for [topic] aimed at [audience]. Include learning objectives, key concepts with examples, practice exercises, and assessment questions."
Productivity & Planning (21-25)
- Meeting agenda: "Create a focused agenda for a [duration]-minute meeting about [topic]. Include time allocations, discussion questions, and desired outcomes for each item."
- Project plan: "Create a project plan for [project]. Include phases, key milestones, dependencies, estimated timelines, and potential risks. Format as a table."
- Delegation brief: "Help me delegate [task] to [team member]. Write a brief covering: objective, deliverables, deadline, context they need, and decision authority."
- Feedback draft: "Help me write constructive feedback for [person] about [topic]. Use the SBI model (Situation, Behavior, Impact). Be specific and development-focused."
- Negotiation prep: "I'm negotiating [what] with [whom]. Help me prepare: 1) My ideal outcome, 2) My BATNA, 3) Their likely position, 4) Key arguments, 5) Potential compromises."
Want even more powerful prompts? Browse our complete library of 77 expert-crafted prompts with detailed examples and outputs.