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IntermediateLesson 3 of 58 min read

From a vague idea to an action plan

A course from the Academy: Getting organised with AI: notes, meetings, email

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"We should redo the website", "I'd like to start a newsletter": a project that stays an idea never starts. AI is excellent at turning a vague intention into concrete steps, provided you give it the right context.

The three-step method

  • Describe: the goal, the expected result, the deadline, the time you have each week, and your constraints (budget, skills).
  • Break down: ask the AI for stages, then for each stage tasks small enough to take under two hours. A task that's too big never gets started.
  • Order: what blocks everything else first, then what has the most impact, then the rest.

The prompt that works

"I want to launch a monthly newsletter for my clients by 15 November. I have three hours a week and no budget. Break this project into stages, then into tasks of under two hours, in the order to do them. Flag the decisions I need to make myself."

Staying in control

  • The AI suggests, you decide: cross out useless tasks, add the ones it can't know about.
  • Copy the tasks into your tool (list, board, calendar) with a date: a plan that stays in a chat gets forgotten.
  • Each week, ask it to review the plan with what got done and what slipped.
Analogy. A GPS: you give the destination and your constraints (no tolls, before 6 pm), it suggests a route broken into stages. But you're the one driving, and you can take another road if you know the way.

Key takeaways

  • Describe the goal, the deadline, the time available and the constraints.
  • Break it down into tasks of under two hours.
  • Order: blockers first.
  • Copy into your tool with dates, and review weekly.

Complete the lesson

A 4-question quiz: 3 correct answers are enough, plus an exercise to practise. It opens in the Academy, on this same lesson.

Take the quiz and complete the lesson Free. With an account, your progress is saved and leads to the course certificate.

The course: Getting organised with AI: notes, meetings, email

  1. One place to capture everything8 min
  2. Meetings that summarise themselves8 min
  3. From a vague idea to an action plan8 min
  4. Getting on top of your inbox8 min
  5. Your week organised in twenty minutes9 min

The whole Academy →The AI glossary