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AI as Your Brainstorming Partner
40-45 minutesBest for: People comfortable with technology or already exploring AI
What You'll Do
Use AI to help brainstorm and develop ideas for a real project or challenge in your life. This could be business-related, community-related, or personal.
1Choose an AI tool
2Identify a real challenge or project you're working on
Examples:
- Planning an event for your community group
- Marketing ideas for your small business
- Organizing a fundraiser
- Redecorating a room
- Planning a family trip
- Writing content for social media
- Creating a workshop or presentation
3Start a brainstorming conversation with AI
Choose one of the starter prompts below or create your own.
For Small Business
Prompt - Copy and paste this:
I run a [type of business] in rural Montana. I want to attract more customers but I have a small marketing budget. Can you help me brainstorm 5 creative, low-cost marketing ideas?
For Community Organizing
Prompt - Copy and paste this:
I'm organizing a [type of event] for my community. I need ideas for activities that would appeal to families with kids and also adults. Can you suggest 10 ideas?
For Personal Projects
Prompt - Copy and paste this:
I want to [describe your goal]. I'm not sure where to start. Can you help me break this down into manageable steps?
5Review the AI's suggestions
Which ideas resonate with you?
6Dig deeper with follow-up questions
Examples:
- "Can you expand on idea #3?"
- "What would be the first step for [specific idea]?"
- "Can you help me create a timeline for this?"
- "What resources would I need to make this happen?"
7Refine the ideas
- "Can you adapt these ideas for a rural community?"
- "Which of these would be easiest to do in the winter?"
- "Can you make these ideas more budget-friendly?"
8Get something actionable
- "Can you create a simple action plan for [your favorite idea]?"
What You Should Have By The End
- •A list of ideas from AI
- •At least 2-3 follow-up questions asked
- •One idea that you're actually considering using
Reflection (Optional)
•Did AI suggest anything you wouldn't have thought of yourself?
•How did the conversation flow? Did it understand your follow-ups?
•Would you use this approach for future projects?
General Tips for All Tasks
Saving Your Conversation (All Tasks):
- •If you're signed in to your account, your chats are saved automatically and show up in the history list (usually along the left side of the screen). You can come back to them any time.
- •ChatGPT: Your chat appears in the left sidebar. Click the three dots next to a chat to rename it or share it.
- •Claude: Your chat appears under your recent chats in the left sidebar. Click the chat's title at the top to rename it.
- •Gemini: Your chat appears in the left menu under recent chats. Click the three dots next to a chat to rename or pin it.
- •Not signed in? The chat may disappear when you close the page. Select the text you want to keep, copy it, and paste it into a document before you leave.
- •Menus move around, so if you don't see these options, look for a three-dot menu next to the chat.
Getting Unstuck:
- •If AI gives you an unhelpful response, try rephrasing your question
- •Add more details or context
- •Ask it to try again with specific changes
Technical Issues:
- •If the AI tool isn't loading, try refreshing the page or switching to a different tool
- •Make sure you're connected to wifi
- •Ask Connor for help!
Remember:
- •There's no "wrong" way to do this
- •Experimentation is encouraged
- •You can switch tasks if you want to try something different
- •AI makes mistakes - use your judgment
What to Bring Next Week (Optional)
- •If you had an interesting conversation, be ready to share what you learned
- •Bring questions about AI that came up while you were experimenting
- •If something didn't work well, we can troubleshoot together