1.2 – Brainstorming and Generating Content With ChatGPT Lesson

Lesson Overview

Creating a compelling presentation starts long before the first slide. Whether you’re an expert or new to a subject, outlining what to cover and how to structure your message can be hard—especially when you’re short on time or working alone. This lesson shows how ChatGPT can make this early stage faster and more effective for anyone building a presentation, no matter the platform (PowerPoint, Keynote, Gamma, or others).

You’ll see how to move from a general idea to a specific presentation goal, and how to generate multiple angles or topics to choose from. By using ChatGPT prompts (examples and a downloadable prompt guide are provided in the course resources), you’ll be able to clarify your objective, ask for presentation ideas that fit your target audience, and get structured outlines that save hours of manual brainstorming.

This method is ideal for business pitches, team updates, project summaries, or quickly responding to last-minute requests. AI-generated outlines can be easily tailored—ask for refocused sections, remove irrelevant content, or request slide-level ideas. With each prompt, you control how broad or detailed the results should be, making this approach suitable for company leaders, marketers, educators, and solo entrepreneurs. Real-world uses include crafting a pitch deck, preparing client presentations, or outlining a training seminar.

Who This Is For

If you’re responsible for creating presentations and want to streamline your brainstorming and content planning, this lesson will help you work smarter. Suitable for:

• Team leads preparing project updates or results
• Startup founders building pitch decks on tight deadlines
• Marketers designing campaign strategy presentations
• Educators outlining lectures or class materials
• Solo business owners with limited time and resources
• Anyone asked to present on unfamiliar or complex topics
  

Where This Fits in a Workflow

Brainstorming and structuring come at the very beginning of the presentation-building process. After getting your assignment or deciding on a topic, you’ll use ChatGPT to find the most effective angle, clarify your main objective, and turn raw ideas into a practical outline. For example, after being asked to explain a new market trend, you can use prompts to generate ideas, structure your main sections, and ensure your final outline matches the needs of your audience—before you begin building slides.

Later, the outline and breakdown generated in this phase will guide your design choices, ensure each section has purpose, and provide a foundation for visuals, speaker notes, and more detailed content. This step sets up the next phases: building visual content and practicing delivery.

Technical & Workflow Benefits

Traditionally, brainstorming and outlining a presentation takes hours of manual work and revising—especially if you start with a blank page and need to cover unfamiliar ground. With ChatGPT, you can generate a variety of ideas, objectives, and structures in minutes rather than hours. Instead of guessing what your audience needs or spending time cutting unnecessary sections, prompt-based workflows allow you to:

• Explore more creative directions quickly (“Suggest three potential angles for [topic]”)
• Fine-tune your outline for coherence and simplicity, reducing duplication or off-topic sections
• Get slide-by-slide breakdowns, complete with tips on key points and visuals to include
• Retain all your brainstorming in one place for easy reference and updates

In practice, this means faster project turnaround, fewer missed details, and presentations that stay on message—helpful for both seasoned presenters and those handling all content tasks solo.

Practice Exercise

Set up a free account at chatgpt.com or open your preferred AI chat platform. Use the following scenario for practice:

**Scenario:** You’re asked to present to your team about the benefits of incorporating AI tools into daily operations at a real estate agency.

**Steps:**

1. Use a prompt to generate three presentation ideas suited for a commercial real estate audience.
2. Choose your favorite and ask ChatGPT to produce a structured outline focused on your selected objective.
3. Copy the outline back into the chat and request a shorter, more focused version if needed.

**Reflection:** How does the AI-generated outline compare to what you would have created on your own? Did any new ideas or angles surprise you, and will you use them?

Course Context Recap

This lesson provided practical steps for using ChatGPT to brainstorm and structure your presentation content, turning a blank page into a focused plan. In the earlier lesson, you explored defining objectives and audience needs. Upcoming lessons will show how to use AI to develop visual elements like charts and refine your delivery. Continue through the course to see how each piece builds toward polished, effective AI-powered presentations. Explore the resources and prompt book to get the most from this workflow.