Communication is the engine that makes businesses run—and digital communication is the fuel. Many of today’s professionals spend more of their work lives communicating than doing focused, independent work. That’s what Microsoft found in a study of 31,000 people across 31 countries: the average employee spends 57% of their time in communication—in meetings, email, and chat—versus 43% creating.

LLMs like ChatGPT can be powerful tools to make communication more efficient and effective. But there’s a caveat: those same tools can damage trust if misused. Research shows that when people either suspect or know a message was written with AI, they’re more likely to question the relationship and whether the sender put in enough effort.

As the leader of a SaaS company built on automation, I’m always looking for new AI-powered tools to improve my communication. My approach is simple: I do the heavy lifting—the thinking and the writing—myself, then use tools like ChatGPT to catch mistakes before I hit send. Here are five prompts you can use to do the same.

Find Hidden Assumptions In Your Message

Nowadays, busyness is an epidemic. Most professionals jump from task to task from the moment they start the day until they power down their computer. It’s easy to get tunnel vision—becoming so focused on our own tasks and objectives that we forget to consider other perspectives. Messages that assume other people understand our perspective waste time on both sides.

ChatGPT can serve as an editor to ensure your messages don’t contain hidden assumptions. Here’s a prompt to try:

“I’m going to share a message I’m sending to [recipient/role]. The purpose is [briefly explain objective]. I’d like you to identify the assumptions I’m making in this message. Point out what the reader may not know or share, and please suggest small edits to make it clearer and more accessible—without changing my voice or tone.”

Eliminate Vagueness And Lead With Clarity

When we communicate at work, it’s safe to assume that most readers are skimming our messages. That means they should be crystal clear. Simple rules of thumb are to avoid wordiness, lead with your most important points, and include any information needed to clarify your ideas.

ChatGPT can help identify where your message may be vague or unclear and avoid unnecessary back-and-forth.

“I’d like you to review this message and identify any places where I’m being too vague or unclear. Please ask any questions that would help you better understand the purpose or recipient. Then, suggest small edits that improve clarity without changing my voice or tone.”

Answer The Real Question Being Asked

Let’s say you receive a message from a higher-up. It’s a high-stakes matter, and naturally, you want to be thorough.

“Your natural impulse in those moments may be to stick to the facts and cover all bases. But the most detailed answers backfire when they fail to address why an executive is asking in the first place,” notes Harvard Business Review .

Rather than firing back an information dump, consider the other person’s deeper motive or concern—and whether your response actually addresses it.

Here’s a prompt you can use to determine whether you’re answering the real question being asked.

“I’m going to share a message I received from [insert description of person/their role]. I’d like you to review the message and identify the sender’s deeper motive or concern. Then consider whether my response addresses it. Please suggest any edits to ensure my response addresses their underlying goal.”

Improve Any Message With One High-Impact Change

I often receive hundreds of emails throughout the day. If I want to make time for more meaningful work, efficiency is essential. That said, when an important message deserves a thoughtful reply, I stick to a “one-hour lag” rule. After drafting an email, I wait at least an hour before hitting send. I find that I almost always realize ways to strengthen the message when I return to it with fresh eyes.

You can try the one-hour lag rule—and take it one step further by using ChatGPT to identify how to make a strong message even more impactful.

“I’d like you to review this message and tell me one change that would make it about 20% stronger. Please focus on the highest-impact improvement while preserving my voice and tone. Ask any questions if you need more information to understand my intent or background.”

Make Action Items Impossible To Miss

When writing is effective, the recipient knows exactly what you expect from them without having to reply for clarification or comb through the message. Before hitting send, make sure your requests and action items are obvious.

Formatting can help—specifying the action requested in the email subject (“Reply Needed by 5pm,” “For Approval,” etc.); or bolding and bulleting the action items. ChatGPT can, too. Try this prompt:

“I’d like you to review this message to see whether the action items and requirements are clear. Start by identifying every request or action item. Then point out anything that’s unclear, implicit, or easy to miss, and suggest small edits to make the next steps unmistakable.”