Storytime: Ryan's most productive commute

Ryan is a longtime friend and collaborator of mine. He’s a performance coach who works with corporations and senior executives, and he recently told me a story about how he’s using AI that I had to share.

He had a big meeting coming up with a retail client and was about to drive an hour to get there. Before leaving, he dropped his analysis pack into ChatGPT. His plan: use the drive to think through the material and sharpen his strategy.

So that’s what he did. With ChatGPT voice mode on, he started talking through the entire analysis while driving—asking questions, pressure-testing his assumptions, and thinking out loud about the storyline he wanted the client to hear. ChatGPT didn’t just reflect his words back; it challenged him to prioritize what really mattered, highlight patterns across the data, and reframe points in clearer, more persuasive language. It became a sparring partner, helping him move from “a bunch of findings” to “a tight narrative with a clear takeaway.”

When he pulled into the parking lot, he gave it one more prompt: “Format this so I can drop it into Gamma when I park.” ChatGPT reorganized everything into clean, slide-ready chunks. Ryan hotspotted his phone, pasted it into Gamma, and within minutes had a polished deck ready to go.

In the meeting, he didn’t lean on the slides. He said, “I’ve got some key points on slides, but I really just want to tell you the story.” And it worked—the client was engaged, the conversation flowed, and Ryan felt confident.

Later, he told me: “That one experience completely changed how I approach prep work. I realized my first pass should always be a conversation with AI (ideally while I’m driving). It’s not about skipping prep. It’s about using time I already have to prepare smarter.”

How to Make Voice Your Productivity Superpower

I love voice mode because it lets me capture messy thoughts quickly without needing to organize or structure them (yet). It removes friction from getting started, forces clarity, surfaces blind spots, and gets me outside.

Let's talk tactics.

When to Use Voice Mode

• Car rides - My commute becomes prep time or strategic thinking
• Dog walks - I find I process thoughts best while getting fresh air
• Household chores - Makes folding laundry feel so much more valuable
• Sitting at my desk - Sometimes, even when I'm at my computer, it feels more natural to talk it out

The Tools

1. ChatGPT Voice Mode is the main player here. It's conversational, responsive, and gets smarter the more you use it. Ryan used it to work through his meeting prep, then asked for a specific output: "Format this so I can easily drop it into Gamma when I park." That prompt turned an hour of thinking into a ready-to-use deck.
2. Voice Notes (on your phone) are your other secret weapon. Unlike ChatGPT voice mode, voice notes don't respond; they just capture. This is perfect when thoughts are coming fast and you don't want interruption or the need to speak coherently (yet). Capture everything now, have AI organize it later.
3. Gamma is what Ryan used to turn his formatted content into slides instantly. It's the leader in AI slide creation. Gamma.ai​
4. "Connectors" in ChatGPT: I have my Gmail, Google Calendar, and Google Drive connected to ChatGPT, which means the AI can pull context from my actual work life. Here's how I use this on the way to meetings:
   • If I'm meeting someone I've worked with before, I'll say: "Summarize my latest emails with [name] and pull up notes from our last meeting." The AI gives me a quick brief so I'm not walking in cold.
   • If it's someone new, I'll ask: "Look up [name] on LinkedIn and tell me about them." By the time I arrive, I know their background and can have a more informed conversation.

This feels like having a personal assistant who's already read everything and is ready to brief you.

Try This Yourself

Pick one of these to try this week:

For Meeting Prep​
Talk through an upcoming meeting with ChatGPT voice mode and have it coach you on setting goals, structuring the meeting, and starting with a strong opener.

Prompts:

• “You are my strategic sparring partner. I’m prepping for a meeting with [Client]. Here’s the analysis pack [pasted/attached]. Help me: (1) extract 3 executive takeaways, (2) map data → story beats, (3) anticipate 5 stakeholder objections with responses.”
• “From the above, force-rank what matters to the client by impact × proof. If something is ‘interesting but not decisive,’ say so and park it.”
• “Reformat into slide-ready chunks: Title, 1-sentence takeaway, 3 bullets (evidence), and ‘So what?’ for each.”
• “Draft a 60-second opening that frames the problem, stakes, and what we’ll decide.”

For Brainstorming​
Open a voice note and start rambling about something that's been on your mind. Maybe a podcast or article stuck with you, and you have reflections. Maybe your kids just started school and you're pondering new beginnings or the joys of youth. Whatever it is, just talk it out. This could become a blog post, a thoughtful letter, a journal entry, or a LinkedIn post.

Later, paste the transcript into ChatGPT with one of these prompts:

• "Turn this into something coherent"
• "Turn this into a to-do list with priorities"
• "Turn this into a blog outline"
• "Extract the three most important ideas here"

For Daily Clarity​
On your morning walk or commute, open ChatGPT voice mode and talk through your day.

Need help finding these tools? Ask ChatGPT (or Claude, Perplexity, etc.). Say "how do I start voice mode?" or "how do I find the voice recorder app on my phone?"

Next Week: AI as Your Executive Coach

Over the past several years, I've built coaching platforms and trained AI systems to support career development. Next week, I'm sharing how AI can function as your always-available executive coach—helping you set goals, track progress, process challenges, and stay accountable. If you've ever wished you had a coach in your pocket, you won't want to miss this one.

Until then,

Mollie

P.S. Have you tried using voice mode for work yet? Hit reply and tell me what you used it for—I'd love to hear your story.

Mollie Amkraut Mueller ​molliemueller.com​ ​​

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