It’s so easy to just jump into ChatGPT and start asking questions. Invariably, you will end up with the responses you want and, chances are, you’ll be more than happy with that – even if you had to ask some follow-up questions or give ChatGPT a little extra nudge in the right direction to get the required end result.
But what if I told you that you could get to the final destination more quickly if you played around with the settings in OpenAI’s chatbot? Not only that, you could get results that better fit your requirements. All it takes is a few minutes of your time making a few tweaks before you start a ChatGPT session. Want to find out how? Then read on.
1. Always customize ChatGPT
To ensure I gain more targeted responses in ChatGPT, I select my profile image in the top-right corner and click Customize ChatGPT (you can also select Settings > Personalization > Custom Instructions).
This allows me to fill in details about myself and indicate the traits that I want ChatGPT to have, ensuring the AI is able to act more like a trusted, close companion rather than a distant robot.
Since I often want the AI to work in a different way each time I use it, I look to make tweaks to this setting before embarking on a chat.
For example, let’s say I want to generate some stories for my young daughter, then get it to create a quiz and finish off by generating some pictures she could color. In the box called “What traits should ChatGPT have?” I can ask it to use chatty language appropriate for someone below the age of three and then, in the section called “Anything else ChatGPT should know about you?” list her likes and dislikes (“she loves dinosaurs, dragons and princesses”).
This can save me a lot of time and prevent me from constantly re-entering or explaining background information.
Later, when I’m looking to use ChatGPT for work, I can change the traits and data about myself so that the AI adopts a more professional tone and works on the basis that I like tech and have deep knowledge about certain devices.
By saving various scenarios in a document, it’s easy to just copy and paste information into the settings as and when required.
2. Decide if you want ChatGPT to remember stuff
ChatGPT becomes more useful the more you use it – especially if you get it to remember key data. To ensure it can do this, open ChatGPT’s Settings, select Personalization and turn on Memory. From that point on, it’ll be capable of retaining snippets of information.
Again, taking my daughter as an example, I can tell ChatGPT to store how old she is and to remember what she’s looking forward to doing on her birthday.
If I then want to get some appropriate party game suggestions or have ChatGPT come up with some party invitations, it will draw upon that information (while also taking into account anything added to the Custom Instructions). And if, further down the line, I want to produce some educational material, it can ensure it’s age-appropriate and maybe even incorporate details of her birthday to inject a bit of fun.
Memories can be managed by deleting any information that has been stored. It’s also possible to clear the lot. But if there’s ever a time when I don’t want ChatGPT to retain information, I generally hit Temporary in the top-right corner so that those chats are not used to create memories.
3. Check out the custom ChatGPT versions
As well as deciding whether or not to change ChatGPT’s theme (Settings > General > Theme) depending on the time of day, when I’m looking to perform a set task, I select my Profile image and choose Explore GPTs.
It allows me to check out any themed chatbots created by companies and the ChatGPT community and, since new ones are added to the GPT Store all the time, I like to make sure I’m not missing something potentially useful.
I may want to book a holiday, for instance, in which case the Expedia GPT can be well placed to suggest hotels, help me find things to do and provide links that allow me to book with minimum fuss. When looking to create a job covering letter, I may decide to turn to Cover Letter which will allow me to upload my resume and the job description.
There are GPTs for all kinds of situations and they’re so simple to install. They not only save time but offer tailored assistance and they can be super-helpful. Code Copilot GPT is like having a programming expert sitting next to you and the Canva GPT is great for assisting in the design of logos and marketing materials.
And there you go. With a bit of extra time invested before a ChatGPT session, you can get around the need to keep prompting the chatbot to do what you want. You’ll also benefit from a more personalized experience without necessarily giving your sensitive data away. It’s certainly worth a go.
