It's officially the new year, which likely means you are looking for new ways to optimize your everyday life. Lucky for you, one free, very capable tool is here to help -- ChatGPT. 

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Although ChatGPT has made headlines because of its advanced coding, writing, and chatting capabilities, it can also help with simpler everyday tasks. You don't have to be a tech wiz to harness the power of ChatGPT in your everyday life. 

ChatGPT can improve your productivity and solve real-world problems in many ways, and we rounded up some of the highlights to get you started.

1. Draft emails

Drafting emails can be a tedious, time-consuming task. Stringing together all the right words to get your message across while still using the right tone and corporate jargon is harder than it looks, especially if you are on a time crunch or trying to declutter your crowded inbox. ChatGPT can help. 

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As a sample prompt, I entered the text: "Help me draft an email to my boss letting her know that I have a doctor's appointment today." Within seconds, the chatbot outputted an email template that was perfectly suitable for the situation.The more information you include in your prompt, the more tailored ChatGPT's letter will be. All you have to do is copy and paste what it outputs into your email, tweak it to your liking, and hit send. 

2. Prepare for a big task

Experiencing nerves or jitters before a big task is a normal part of the human experience. Sometimes, a good pep talk or game plan can help you stay focused and zero in on the task at hand. Instead of asking your colleagues, family, or even Google for the perfect pre-event strategy, you can ask ChatGPT. 

Also: How to get a shareable link to a ChatGPT conversation

As an example, I asked ChatGPT: "I have a big presentation ahead, can you give me some motivation?" As a result, I got a five-step action plan to succeed. The advice was relevant, insightful, encouraging, and, most importantly, helpful. It not only hyped me up but also provided me with feasible things I could do at the moment to ensure success. 

You could, of course, tailor the prompt to be as motivational or helpful as you'd like. For example, if you want a more specific, less motivational plan, you can include as much detail as you'd like in your ChatGPT prompt. For example, you can say, "I am about to write an essay; help me compose an outline."

3. Compose lists

As someone who loves lists, this feature is a game-changer. Lists are such an easy way to get organized and ensure you don't forget anything. However, making lists can be time-consuming to write and can require background research. Now ChatGPT can do that for you. 

For example, when I go on vacation, instead of writing my own packing list from scratch, I ask ChatGPT to write it for me, and I can ask it to tailor it to the destination I am going to. 

Also: How to use ChatGPT to plan a vacation

For the sample prompt in this article, I asked ChatGPT: "Can you make me a grocery list with basic groceries?" Within seconds, I had a 15-item list with kitchen essentials that made a great baseline. After getting my list, I could easily copy and paste it into my notes and tailor it to my liking. 

If you are making a specific meal, you could even ask ChatGPT to include the ingredients for that meal in the list by saying something like, "I am making baked ziti tonight. Can you add those ingredients to the list?" The possibilities for these kinds of lists are endless.

4. Help with social media strategy

Whether you are creating content for a personal or professional account, you could benefit from asking ChatGPT to help you come up with captions. Finding a caption that is short and trendy but that also applies to your picture can be challenging, especially for content that isn't particularly descriptive, such as selfies. You can feed a prompt into ChatGPT with as much detail as you'd like about your photo for it to generate the perfect caption. 

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I kept my prompt simple and said: "I am going to post a selfie on Instagram; can you help me come up with a caption?" ChatGPT generated eight caption alternatives, which were all fun, trendy, concise, and even included emojis.

ChatGPT can also take it a step further and help you by brainstorming a campaign and even planning posts for you in detail. For example, you could say, "Can you help me plan the next nine grid posts for my Instagram?" Then ChatGPT will ask you more specifics about your account to give you a detailed plan. 

5. Make a custom workout plan for you

One of the most popular New Year's resolutions is hitting the gym or working out. If you find yourself in the same boat but need a little help getting started, ChatGPT can create a workout plan tailored to your specific needs with a single prompt. All you have to do is tell ChatGPT as much detail about what you are looking for in a workout as you'd like, and it will generate a plan for you in seconds. 

Also: I tested the Whoop 4.0 band with its ChatGPT-like fitness coach, and it blew me away

For this example, I told ChatGPT I wanted treadmill workouts to improve my running stamina, and it generated a list of five different workouts I could try, as seen in the photo above. The bot even includes advice for you to get your desired results, such as warming up and increasing workouts gradually. 

...but don't forget!

What chatbots like ChatGPT are doing is taking a vast amount of content from all across the internet and then trying to shape that information into something that could answer the question you are asking. 

Also: The promise and peril of AI at work in 2024, according to Deloitte's Tech Trends report

These bots don't know if what they are producing is accurate and we have little way of knowing where the information has come from. There are plenty of examples of these bots providing incorrect information or simply making it up to fill the gaps. 

This means you should not rely on what these bots tell you without doing your own due diligence, too -- just as you would with a standard (old-fashioned?) web search.

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• AI in 2023: A year of breakthroughs that left no human thing unchanged
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• Almost half of tech executives say their organizations aren't ready for AI or other advanced initiatives