A chat model has read more explanations of compound interest than any teacher alive, and it is patient in a way no person is. That makes it a very good explainer of well-understood things. It also has no shame, which makes it a very good brainstormer: it will give you twenty ideas without worrying that fifteen are bad. Your job is the filtering.
Win 3: explain a difficult concept
Say the level ("to a 12-year-old", "to someone who has never invested"), ask for one everyday example, and cap the length. Without a level, the model aims at the middle and pleases nobody.
Try it
Explain compound interest to a 12-year-old
- Did it work? Read the example and check the arithmetic yourself. If it says $100 at 10% becomes $110 then $121, that is right. If the numbers do not add up, the explanation is wrong even though it reads well.
- If not: ask *"Show the calculation for each year in a table."* Making the model show its working is the fastest way to catch a slip.
Win 4: brainstorm ideas
Ask for more ideas than you want, with constraints. Ten ideas under a budget is a better prompt than "any ideas?" because the constraints do the filtering before you have to.
Try it
Ten birthday ideas under a budget
- Did it work? Ten ideas, each with a cost, none a surprise party, none for a crowd. If it suggested a surprise, it ignored a constraint — worth knowing, because it will do the same with your constraints.
- Then: reply with *"Combine 3 and 7, and give me two more like 5."* Brainstorming is a conversation, and the second turn is where the good idea usually appears.
Your turn
Your turn: a brainstorm with constraints
Give me [NUMBER] ideas for [WHAT]. Constraints: [CONSTRAINTS]. One line each, numbered, with a rough cost in brackets.
Hint: Ask for more than you need. The extra ones are cheap and the filtering is the useful part.
Knowledge check
Which of these is the AI most likely to explain correctly on a free account, without you checking?