How I work with GenAI

Everyone speaks about it: GenAI is changing how we work!

Well, in my case it did, and here is how...

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Passion & Productivity

Writing and communication are two of my passions - I do it to clear my head, express myself, and communicate with others. However, writing takes time, and honestly, not all things I need to write have the goal of being fun and passionate.

In some cases, writing is solely a tool to communicate ideas, explain certain experiences, or showcase projects I worked on.

If I write for fun, I have all the time and mostly no real goal at the end. If I write for a certain task this changes completely - then it is all about effectiveness and productivity. Luckily, I am living in times of GenAI, which is a massive time-saver for me in these situations.

What is GenAI?

I found a good definition of GenAI in a lecture by Mattias Rost (2024):

GenAI is like a "spinning wheel of fortune, where every spin generates a new word based on a probability distribution conditioned on the given prompt" (Rost, 2024).

Ever since hearing this analogy, it makes sense to me why GenAI is so good at writing text. The image of the wheel of fortune made it clear to me how the decision for the next word is made. It also clearly highlighted why GenAI does come up with false facts now and then.

If you want to see the whole lecture from Mattias Rost click here.

How I use GenAI

I use GenAI platforms mostly for two reasons - Idea generation & basic writing tasks.

Idea Generation

I want to get some keywords for a new topic - I ask ChatGPT.

I have a new idea but need some context - I ask ChatGPT.

I need a plan on how to get started - I ask ChatGPT.

In my opinion, GenAI can be tremendously helpful to get started on a topic. Especially in situations where I come across a new topic and I am missing the main keywords or language to talk about.

Example

At the beginning of my master's program in IT & Learning, I used a prompt to come up with some areas of skill development. I took the answers as ideas and kept my eyes and ears open to learning opportunities in these areas.

Basic writing

I already mentioned my love for words but in cases where it needs to be quick and productive, I ask GenAI to write a first draft for me.

Especially for this portfolio, I use ChatGPT to highlight my projects and experiences. By asking for a first draft, I jump over the first hurdle to get started as well as the effort to translate my work.

Having the first draft, I edit and proofread the language, content, and overall structure. At times this means to write some parts completely new, at others, this includes only minimal changes. Either way, it usually cuts down the time I need for publishing an article here significantly.

Example

A lot of my work has been done in German. Since I decided to showcase my work in English here, to make it accessible to an international audience, I need to translate it. Therefore, I use prompts to directly translate and write a post for this portfolio.

What I don't use GenAI for

I see a lot of helpful use cases in GenAI, however, there are certain things I deliberately do not use it for.

Showcasing my individual writing skills

I always add a disclaimer to distinguish between a text that I wrote alone and a text that I wrote with the assistance of GenAI.

When writing a text I consider its purpose and decide based on that whether to use GenAI or not. If my goal is to showcase my individual writing skills, I see no point in using GenAI as I would consider that cheating. However, if I want to change the format or highlight another project I think GenAI is of great value.

Fact-checking

Why I use GenAI

I see GenAI as an assistance to bounce ideas back and forth, to get started with tasks, or to inspire new ideas. I strongly believe that this technology can enhance work processes tremendously if used effectively.

By using GenAI I can make more of my skills, and spend more time on editing and fine-tuning my work, rather than basic things like spending time on translations. Because of the massive time savings, I actually can focus on content and future projects while still being able to showcase them here.

I also strongly believe that it is important to develop AI literacy, to keep up with new technologies. By using GenAI I develop skills on how to effectively use different kinds of platforms, but also how to critically examine the outcomes.

In general, I see this as a win-win, in terms of being able to save time while developing skills to work with AI products.

If you have specific questions on how I use GenAI or want to know more about my skills in that area, feel free to reach out!