Hey there!
This is Ankur. Hope you had a lovely weekend and are back to the grind now 🥲
Welcome to Lazy AI — India’s only AI newsletter for non-tech folks — 5 mins of reading every day, to help you stay ahead of the AI curve.
Today, I’m talking about two modes of ChatGPT which if used well, can drastically improve results. Like I can’t emphasize how drastically!
The problem is, most people don’t know which one to use when!
Before delving into the details, a quick poll..I just want to understand how helpful today’s article might be for you..
Okay, let’s begin…
What are these modes inside ChatGPT?
Like I said, apart from the default mode in ChatGPT, there are 2 other important modes which most people miss. While there are more, these 2 are the most important for most corporate slaves employees.
Thinking mode
Deep research mode
Each of these modes serves a specific purpose, and will give you very, very different results. You can see them when you click on the “+” icon in the input bar of ChatGPT.
Let me tell you how they work, with some examples.
Thinking mode
As the name suggests, this mode makes the AI “think”. You should use this mode if you want deep reasoning or analysis to be done for your problem statement.
Basically, thinking mode in ChatGPT:
Breaks down complex problems step by step
Connects ideas across domains
Builds structured arguments
Evaluates trade-offs
Solves multi-layered logic problems
For example, if you want to create a strategic plan for a business, solve a math problem/puzzle, do systems thinking, or do anything else that requires deeper, step-by-step analysis, toggle the Thinking mode.
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Deep research mode
This one’s interesting. I personally love it.
The deep research mode in ChatGPT searches, compares, cites, and validates information. It:
Pulls recent data
Verifies current policies or numbers
Compares companies or tools
Cites sources
Tracks time-sensitive facts
The best part is, if you prompt it well, it will also do the analysis that the Thinking mode does.
The worst part? You only get 5 deep research searches per month on the free plan. If you have the Plus plan, you get 10.
This mode is great if you want deep dives, report creation and deep analysis of information after pulling it from the internet.
Think
Analysis of stocks and mutual funds as a research analyst
Generating comprehensve industry reports for your product
Competitor analysis
and more..
Comparing both modes
Here’s a brief table that compares both modes:
Want to do a fun exercise? Just pick a task (like doing an industry analysis) and give the prompt to ChatGPT in both these modes (along with the default mode). You’ll be surprised at the massive difference in output!
Because these days, just using AI is not enough. Knowing how to use it is what gives you the best results.
Like I said earlier, there are more modes in ChatGPT. But since I want to keep this newsletter brief, I wanted to speak about the 2 most important ones today.
If you’d like to know about the other modes in ChatGPT (Study mode, web search, shopping research), just reply to this email and let me know. I’ll write it in the next issue :)
If this article added any value, do consider subscribing so that you keep receiving this newsletter regularly. It’s free, lasts 5 minutes, and keeps you ahead of the curve!
That’s it for today!
If you liked today’s article, please share it with a friend. I’m trying to build an AI community, and maximum shares will help :)
I’ll see you next time..
Cheers,
Ankur