3 Tips to sweeten up your Copilot journey

About how to make Copilot your autopilot!

If you’ve ever planned to “just use Copilot more” by Monday and watched the plan fade by Friday, you’re not alone: It's part of being human to avoid change.

You have routines, proven ways you've been doing work, which do not necessary include Copilot.

So why would you change that? Why to use Copilot if your normal has been so far NOT to use it. 🤔 To change implies a short term pain. That's natural. It implies in a way the lost of a proven way of doing things.

"In fact, in one study of the way people tackle change, more than two thirds of respondents told researches that they typically focus on the long-term benefits without regard of the short term pain."

In this blog post, you will learn how the Mary Poppins approach can help you make out of Copilot your new normal.

Put it in other words, I will list 6 tips to make Copilot your autopilot. And because 6 tips would make this Linkedin newsletter unreadable - just too long. I have decided to split it into 2 parts, delivering 3 tips each.

But an autopilot? Nobody wants to be on the autopilot mode!

Let me explain myself.

What is an autopilot?

"Autopilots are the default settings of your behaviour. "

I know the word autopilot is used in different ways in the context of the modern workplace.

Just to name a few:

To describe false usage of Copilot, like copying and pasting e-Mail drafts without critical reviewing and correcting the text.
To describe automation of repetitive tasks.

Today in this adoptAble edition, autopilot is a well-established habit.

I feel this definition fits perfectly in the modern workplace context, therefore after giving it a long chain of thoughts, I decided to stick to the wording.

The definition is neither mine, nor Copilot's, but Katy Milkmann's.

This blog post is inspired by my recent read (or should I call it recent conversation): Katy Milkman 's How to Change. That's where I have the citations from.

Let’s get into tip 1!

Tip 1: Sweeten up your Copilot journey 🧁

If something feels like work, our brains resist it. If it feels fun, we just repeat it.

"Mary Poppins memoral refrain "a spoon of sugar makes the medicine goes down"...

For kids: If it is not fun, kids won't do it. Right?

Adults are wired the same way. It just becomes hard to recognize it.

Gamification ideas for Copilot usage 👾:

- Turn Copilot into a daily streak: “Used Copilot 5 days in a row? 🎉”

- Create team challenges: “Bet you can find the best Copilot prompt this week”

Try this:

Pair Copilot with something you already enjoy.

- Enjoy your morning coffee ☕? Great, pair your morning coffee with using Copilot for your first task of the day.

Link Copilot with something pleasant you already do, your brain will ask for it again.

Tip 2: Break big goals into bite-size chunks 🧩

“Use Copilot more” is vague. Habits need clear cues and the Copilot habit needs even more structure.

Cue-based plans follow a simple structure:

When ___ happens, I will ___ .

Try this:

For those who want to augment their Outlook superpowers:

When I open Outlook in the morning, I will ask Copilot to summarize my inbox.

For those looking to augment their Meeting superpowers:

When a meeting ends, I will read facilitator notes right away.

For those looking to augment Text understanding superpower:

When I feel stuck understanding a text, I will ask Copilot for clarifying.

Try to start small. For example: If you are already recording and transcribing meetings, it will feel natural to turn on Facilitator as a next step.

Tip 3: Commit publicly 📢

We’re more likely to follow through when others know our goals.

This act of public pledging help people stick, but how to do it without it feels awkward.

Do you know Strava? It's like the social media for sports. People basically share publicly their journey with a sport and how they commit to it. And it does not feel awkward, at least not for them. It does for me - honestly, maybe I am avoiding to commit to sports 😂! But let's talk about it another time. 😂

A public pledge is a so called "commitment device". There are several kind of commitment devices, like cash, you create a finantial incentive for achieving a goal.

"Whenever you do something that reduces your own freedoms in the service of a greater goal, you're using a commitment device. "

Try this:

Join your company internal Copilot community. And share with them what you want to achieve with Copilot and how.
No internal Copilot community? No problem! 👇 Drop it in the comments below. I do care about it and I will follow up with YOU how you go with your goal!