Stop asking AI (and people) leading questions

If you want to get the answers you want, ask leading questions. This works with people, and it works with AI. I see people often ask ChatGPT questions like “do you think this marketing idea is cool for Gen-Z?” Or they’ll ask “does this company have a big budget?”

AI, specifically ChatGPT, wants to say yes to provide a good user experience. It doesn’t matter if it lacks context, or understanding, or even if it’s completely made up. It wants to deliver quick wins so people keep using it. 

I’ve been interviewing people after the Creative Consistency Challenges. I’m learning to avoid leading questions. When I ask questions with a structure and a tone that suggests the kind of answer I’m hoping for, people answer in the way I expect. But when I ask open-ended questions, they give me more interesting, unexpected answers, that leads to better research. 

Leading questions are useful in a pinch in negotiations, but not in conversations. In conversations, open-ended questions are where it’s at.

P.S. Please, please, be more skeptical of the answers AI gives you. Ask for sources. Ask it to argue against itself. Ask how it came it its conclusions. Why? Because it’s still making up 10% of its facts.