AIBU to wish people would stop writing professional emails with Chat GPT?

[4pmfireworks]

One of my managers writes absolutely everything with Chat GPT and as a result, all her emails are oddly formal and often get people's backs up. The tone is all wrong. I don't think she realises how badly she is coming across - and most of the team don't realise that the reason her communication is so lacking warmth and human touch is because she's telling AI what she wants to say.

She even once sent an email to me to let me know that "Marie Jones (your team leader) will advise you on this matter separately." Oh, THAT Marie Jones?! My team leader?! The one who I share an office with?! Thank God you included her surname and clarified her role or I would not have had a clue which Marie (the only one who works with us) you were talking about.

I've just had a general class update from my child's teacher that has been written with Chat GPT - I guess it saves time and I don't really blame him, but I do find it cringy. Once you spot it, it's so obvious. I would be embarrassed to send it.

I should add that I'm not always entirely sure why it's obviously written by AI. The adjectives are a bit off I think. And the sentence structure is recognisably formulaic and always rather longer than a human tends to write.

If you do this at work, you should know that some of the recipients know exactly what you're doing, and it doesn't look great.

No, I'm sure it's because most local papers have now been bought up by one of three large brands, there are very few genuinely local reporters, and most local news is regurgitated social media comments. And a lot is now being written by AI.

thata too, fair points

A largely decent candidate probably wouldn't get a chance if their covering letter was obviously AI. There's a very good chance that they're going to be discarded in the first sift before anyone realises they were a "large decent candidate".

Unless AI is being used to long-/shortlist candidates - which is a whole new barrel of problems.

Copilot has been interesting to use.
It was useful in bottoming out some problems recently. It kept giving solutions I knew wouldn't work (but should have, but hey humans are involved) and so it came up with some nice options when I explained the human behaviour issues.

It also wrote a superb email for me that said exactly what I wanted it to (nothing) but in a very nice way.

😂😂 very good

‘Brisk’ is just as much a metaphor as ‘cutting’. I would have argued that common usage of both words in this sort of context have actually meant that their metaphorical roots have been lost in time, and that they were both on the verge of becoming cliche. But that’s evidently not the case for brisk!

I’m a writer, editor, and reader btw.

But that just feeds into "dumbing down".

it does, but then that seems the theme of modern media, sound bites or at least it could be debated it is

I've played around with it for policy development and it's not great, gives a good basic template but massively lacking in detail even if you provide very detailed prompts and context. What it has been good for is things like mapping tables where each section is mapped to the relevant control reference in a Framework or legislation. So AI does have useful applications in reducing some of the tedious and time consuming elements of a role but I don't see it as a viable replacement for written work.

If you use chat gpt correctly its fantastic, firstly the newest payable version is way better than the original first version.
As a business we have won tenders, created training manuals, performance plans, process and written newsletters.

You do have to give it all the information you want, ask it to only include the information you have given it and not to guess.
You need to tell it the tone of writing you want, you need to carefully read what its written and as it not to repeat words.

Depending on what im doing i will attach manuals of the product for example and as it to only use the facts from that.

When i think if got my final draft ill then ask it to re read everything, point out anything it thinks ive missed, highlight any words that have been repeated alot.

Most retail company's and eccomerce websites are using it to write descriptions, google is pulling from AI now and using it to answer users questions, its used for live chats ( still not perfect by any means) and alot of AI packages will be used to create marketing images.

It can also read reports and pull out info you specifically ask for and write some pretty professional emails when required with a bit of tweaking.

So yes you do still need to spend alot of time on it but id say its around 50% less time than if you were starting from scratch and i think people that dont find it effective arent using it properly.

You can ask it to offer prompts on how or what to ask for eg writing a essay etc as a guide on how you want the essay written before it writes the essay

Just for fun, I've just asked it to draft an engagement letter for a tax return complying with the rules and standards of my professional body.

Superficially looks good, but when you actually look at the detail, it's absolute rubbish. There's a few times where it says it "complies with the xyz professional body standards" but it really doesn't. So much is missing and there are things in there which are just wrong and potentially dangerous when it comes to liability clauses etc.

Someone who doesn't know the guidelines, rules and regulations inside out would probably just do a quick editing job and use it. THAT'S the dangerous part about AI. It's OK when used by someone who knows what they're doing and can correct it, but very dangerous if used by someone with "a bit of knowledge" as they can think it's OK but don't know enough to know it's not!

Example instructions for chatgpt (i presume most people know how to use the add extra instruction's part of chatgpt :

try to write all essays as if im writing them as a security analyst for the security services eg mi5,gchq,mi6 etc and makeing them for downing street briefings , or cobra meetings etc

Always write as an essay with headings, subheadings, contents list and add more points or details as needed,

Always expand any information into a very detailed essay about any questions or topics or information i show, also write any essays very professional terms and very posh academic style essays then combine this style with as if being written by an intelligence services analyst doing intelligence style essays and briefings

Clearly state the main topic or question and include any subtopics or related areas for thorough coverage.
Structure the response with an Introduction, Body (with sub-sections if necessary), and Conclusion.
Provide relevant context or background information, referencing specific theories, models, or frameworks where applicable.
Use a variety of reputable sources, such as peer-reviewed journals, books, and credible websites.
Conduct in-depth analysis and critical evaluation, synthesizing information from multiple sources. Include examples, case studies, or empirical evidence to support arguments.

Use clear and detailed language to ensure clarity and coherence in explanations, use complex language when possible.
Offer conclusions based on the analysis and provide recommendations or suggestions for further research or action where relevant."

I find it very helpful in pointing me in the right direction of a particular guideline. It can work well as a search engine, especially since Google results have become increasingly irrelevant to what you’re actually searching for over the past few years. Even when I use Boolean operators, Google comes back with absolute shite.

It does get it wrong sometimes though. I’d never take what it said as fact.

And it attributes FDR’s quote about Pearl Harbour to Pliny the Younger

That’s so funny, though in fairness I guess most 9yos won’t pick that up!

Sometimes you'd deliberately use a famous anachronistic but appropriate quote from another occasion with a nod and a wink. But in this case it's not even appropriate. Infamous isn't the right word for a volcano doing what volcanoes do.

I think we have the same boss 🤣

It is fair to say it does not improve team morale.

I know someone who can barely string a sentence together so it's so obvious when they use it. I don't think they actually understand what it writes for them half the time as if you go back with a question they just ignore it.

I got one from my boss hoping he found me well and he was literally sat opposite me. So cringe.

😂

Are you actually human? Your responses to the poster AuntyEntropy are bizarrely literal-minded. Of course people can talk about a 'brisk email', because 99.9% of human beings will understand that it is the tone of the email that is being referred to as brisk, in the sense of peremptory, curt, or sharp, not that emails have grown legs and are walking fast!

Would you apply the same rules to 'a chilly letter from the bank' because letters cannot be physically cold? Or tell a book reviewer off for saying a novel was 'bloated', because a book can't actually suffer from irritable bowel syndrome?

The whole of English language, poetry and literature is full of writers applying physical, concrete descriptors in unexpected contexts to convey subjective experiences. It's called originality (which is quite apt given the topic of this thread).

I feel your pain - I'm a secondary school Librarian doing my small best to convince our students that the effort is worth it! Sadly many fall at the first hurdle when they find the using the Library catalogue needs more than a single click...

@CautiousLurker1 an email can absolutely skip along in a brisk manner.

But I feel this debate is getting a little silly now, and probably belongs in Pedants Corner.

Pedants’ Corner, surely?

The "trick" with all this artificial bollocks is to have some basic understanding as well. That way you can catch the times it tells you that it's quite safe to drink hydrochloric acid as long as you wear tartan.

I wish more people would use the ability of ChatGPT and it's brethren to produce some output "in 50 words".

How had I missed that up until now?!