Push Your Thinking with AI

AI chatbots are continually being updated and tweaked. Last month OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, faced criticism after an update caused the chatbot to become excessively agreeable and flattering. This “sycophantic” behavior was intended to improve GPT-4o, but it led to over-the-top praise. ChatGPT would agree with the user, even when the human entered incorrect or irrational information into the chat.

OpenAI rolled back the GPT-4o update, making ChatGPT less sycophantic. However, bias toward human input remains an issue. Chatbots don’t tend to push back on the user, opting to dutifully agree with the human.

Depending on the task, it might be a good idea to ask an AI chatbot to push your thinking. To avoid the trap of an overly agreeable chatbot, ask it to challenge, reframe, and critique your ideas.

Push Your Thinking with AI

Refine

Strengthen your thinking by adding clarity, depth, and impact.

• What’s missing that would make it stronger?
  Identifies gaps and areas that need more support.

• How could this be made more inclusive?
  Ensures more people feel represented and considered.

• What assumptions are being made here?
  Helps surface bias and hidden premises.

Reframe

Explore new angles and make your ideas clearer and more relevant.

• What’s another way to frame this?
  Helps you look at your idea from a different perspective.

• How can this be made more relevant?
  Connects the idea more closely to your audience or purpose.

• How could this better capture attention or spark interest?
  Improves engagement by making the idea more appealing.

Reexamine

Test your thinking by finding weak spots, risks, or blind spots.

• Find flaws in this.
  Helps improve the idea by identifying what doesn’t work.

• What would an expert disagree with and why?
  Encourages deeper reasoning and anticipates pushback.

• What might be misunderstood or misinterpreted?
  Helps you clarify confusing parts or misleading wording.

• How could this idea backfire?
  Reveals potential risks or unintended consequences.

I made a poster with 10 ways you can invite a chatbot to stretch your thinking and strengthen your ideas. You’re welcome to download it as a PDF.