CORPORATE AMERICA EA NS GHTS I I BEHIND THE WALLS OF
Use your judgment to decide what’s relevant, realistic, and right for your context. Always avoid sharing confidential information or names when mapping real paths. The GPT can help you think through complexity, but it’s
your role to guide the outcome and shape the direction with insight and awareness.
Executive Assistant Advanced ChatGPT cheat sheet Introduction to ChatGPT patterns specifc to function and strategy outcomes Tree of thought is a way to work through complex problems by exploring multiple options or branching paths. There are four common patterns: option, priority, reasoning, and scenario trees. Each one helps surface ideas, test different paths, and build clarity before making a decision. For EAs, option and priority trees are most helpful. They support high-level planning, compare strategies, and simplifies the output into practical next steps. understanding tree of thought [ToT] framework
Option: This ToT method explores multiple paths before making a choice. It helps EAs think through decisions with tradeoffs when time, resources, or people are involved. Use case: Preparing the executive’s Q4 international travel strategy when balancing budget constraints, external impact, and internal priorities. You need to map travel options across multiple regions, each with different business value, team needs, and leadership visibility. The goal is to evaluate where travel has the biggest return and where virtual engagement seamlessly unfolds. Example: The CEO has limited travel capacity in Q4. Develop three strategic travel paths to guide final planning. Each option should focus on one area: internal team impact, external visibility, or cost efficiency. For each path, outline the benefits, tradeoffs, and suggested actions that align with the company’s year-end business excellence message. Consider that the international HQ is in Vancouver, Canada, where most employees are based. The customer base is evenly distributed across the Americas, Europe, and APEMEA, with smaller base offices in each region. Recommend the option that delivers the highest strategic value for Q4.
Priority: This ToT method helps break down a big task into smaller branches, then expands those into manageable steps. It's ideal for large-scale initiatives where workstreams and dependencies need to be made clear. Use case: Designing a 90-day onboarding experience for a new executive leader across multiple departments. You need to design a program that aligns onboarding across IT, HR, key business units, and comms with milestones, sequencing, and calendar flow. Example: Create a tree of onboarding tasks for a new c- suite leader joining in Q3. Start with four main branches: tech setup, team integration, strategy briefings, and leadership brand building. Under each branch, list key tasks, identify responsible owners, and suggest timeframes. The executive will work in a hybrid agile environment and collaborate across matrixed business units. Their span of control includes six direct reports. The customer base is global, with a strong concentration in APMEA. The role includes quarterly regional travel, with 80% of external engagement and 20% internally. Build the onboarding experience to reflect this strategic landscape across a phased 60 day approach.
Start by drafting the prompt with your own structure in mind, then ask GPT to show multiple paths before choosing a direction. A Tree of Thought approach helps you see the bigger picture first. It encourages new ways of thinking, reveals unexpected options, and gives you space to explore before narrowing in on what works best. This method is especially useful when your work sits across functions, priorities, or timelines. It helps you align with the ecosystem, weigh tradeoffs, and stay a few steps ahead in your planning.
A ToT framework works best when you combine your instinct with the model’s ability to explore, expand, or evaluate paths you might not have considered yet. pro tip
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