Windows Server Posted January 23 Posted January 23 As a marketing professional with ADHD, I’ve learned to embrace the creative chaos that comes with my neurotype, but it also brings unique challenges. Before Copilot, managing my tasks and maintaining focus felt like an uphill battle – and if I’m being really transparent, it often still does. But now, I have a trusty sidekick. Copilot helps me stay on top of my work, tell compelling stories, and connect with people in more meaningful ways. In November, I was able to share my story with an audience during our Microsoft Ignite session: Empowering neurodivergent employees with Copilot. You can watch the full session video with on-stage panelists here. I am excited to share with our Work Smarter audience how Copilot helps me thrive, as well as some of my favorite neurodivergent-friendly prompts. At Ignite, I gave a demo of a day in the life of a neurodivergent marketer. Using Copilot for focus, coaching, and communication Reflecting on meeting discussions For many people, meetings are a double-edged sword. Fully engaging in discussions and taking notes simultaneously can be a challenge. Virtual meetings present interesting opportunities to modify my environment to work with my brain, rather than against it. With Copilot, I validate key takeaways, next steps, and important dates using Meeting Notes within the Recap tab for transcribed meetings. This has been a game-changer for me. Intelligent Recap uses AI to generate notes capturing the key discussions and decisions, allowing you to stay focused and present during the meeting. Coaching and self-improvement After leading a strategy meeting for an upcoming product launch, I often feel uncertain about how well my ideas came across, or whether I rambled too much. Copilot Chat acts as my coach. I prompt it with: “Please provide coaching on how I conducted this meeting. I am a product marketing manager and the marketing project lead for the product launch. My goal was to clearly communicate a progress update and field any questions or concerns from my collaborators.” Copilot Chat returns the following analysis of the meeting: Copilot Chat provides a list of positive attributes from my meeting.As well as areas for improvement and overall feedback. Copilot provides an overview of the meeting, highlighting positive aspects, areas for improvement, and actionable tips. This feedback helps me understand and reframe interactions, especially when dealing with rejection-sensitive dysphoria (RSD) - which is something I and many other neurodivergent individuals experience – for me specifically, this looks like extreme discomfort triggered by either a real or perceived rejection, and when left unaddressed, it greatly affects my focus and confidence for the rest of the day. Copilot Chat enables me to be transparent, and even vulnerable Another game-changing tip – the one I’ve shared the most with anyone who has reached out to me after presenting on this topic – is don’t be afraid to “brain dump” into the prompt box when using Copilot Chat for reflection and coaching. Here’s an example: Copilot gives me a low-stress way to seek advice and guidance. Copilot does a great job of reassuring me and giving an objective interpretation. It even gives me tips for my next 1:1 and an example conversation for our next meeting. I asked Copilot to provide thoughtful perspective from a colleague’s POV.As well as tips for better communication. And examples of how to approach the conversation most productively. What I love about this is that processing this with the aid of Copilot allows me to do so without the discomfort or fear of being misunderstood by another colleague or peer. I can then decide what to do with Copilot’s feedback and suggestions based on the relationship I have with my manager and how we communicate. Even the feedback on their perspective can provide the reframe I need to move forward. Overcoming perfectionism and procrastination Drafting with Copilot One of my tasks Copilot highlighted in the meeting recap was to email a colleague to help generate a report. Sometimes sending a simple email can turn into a time-consuming task when perfectionism takes over. Copilot helps by providing a professional and concise first draft based on the context of my request and details I want to include. It fills up the blank canvas, allowing me to review and adjust the tone to fit my style. This way, I conquer procrastination and maintain productivity. Within Outlook, I can use Copilot to quickly draft emails based upon a set of criteria and details I supply. Copilot makes it easy to edit and enhance email drafts until I’m happy with the result. Embracing neurodivergence with Copilot These are just a few ways I use Copilot to modify my work experience and environment to embrace my neurotype. Copilot reassures me, offers objective interpretations, and provides tips for future interactions. Let us know in the comments if you try these tips and prompts, or if you have any of your own neurodivergent friendly prompts to share. Let's continue to embrace our strengths and shine together! View the full article Quote
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