Practical workflow
Explain an unfamiliar workplace concept at beginner, practical, and technical levels
Learn enough to participate in the conversation first, then add the deeper detail only if you need it.
Checking this browser…
What this helps you do
People entering a new project, role, or technical conversation full of unfamiliar terminology.
What you need
- The term, concept, architecture, process, or acronym
- A sentence about where you encountered it
Do it step by step
- 1
Give the AI the term plus the real workplace context where it appeared.
- 2
Ask first for a beginner explanation focused on what problem it solves.
- 3
Then ask for the practical level: where it appears in a normal workflow and what decisions it affects.
- 4
Only after that, request the technical details, tradeoffs, or architecture you actually need.
- 5
Ask for two questions you can use to check whether you understood the concept correctly in your environment.
Use this in your AI assistant
Starter instructions
Copy the starter below, then paste it into ChatGPT, Copilot, Gemini, Claude, or whichever capable AI assistant you use. If this Workflow calls for photos or files, attach them in that AI assistant too — not on this page.
Explain [CONCEPT] in the context of [WORK SITUATION]. Give me three layers: 1) beginner — what problem it solves in normal language, 2) practical — where I would encounter it and what decisions it affects, and 3) technical — the important mechanics/tradeoffs. Separate general knowledge from anything that would depend on my company's specific implementation.
What a good result looks like
You can follow the next meeting without pretending you already know the subject, and you know which details are organization-specific.
Tips and watch-outs
- Internal terms can mean something different from the industry-standard term; tell the AI when you suspect that.
- Do not paste confidential architecture or credentials just to get a generic concept explained.