Think, not generate content with AI

I spent way too much time trying to remember what I did in my past projects

I’ve been revisiting an old case study recently—trying to turn it into a more compelling story that reflects what I’ve learned and how I work after speaking with mentors and getting feedback on my portfolio. Now, I know the importance of proper documentation on our designs, decisions, basically keeping a journal of our work so we can reference later on. But I was naive back then, I didn’t know what properly documenting meant a few years ago, and now I had to rely on my memory mostly because, well, I can't turn back time. 

When I was reading my old case study, it was as if my memory was stuck in time when I wrote the case study. I couldn't remember moments that were not already in the case study, and there was nothing to help me jog my memory because all I thought to document was UI screens I designed.

So I decided to ask ChatGPT to ask me questions that would help me jog my memory, remembering key moments that can help me enhance my project story in my case study. I was very adamant on having it help me use my own voice and organize my thoughts in my writing instead of generating text for me.

And what surprised me most wasn’t how much I had forgotten… but how much I was able to remember the details once I started prompting AI with the right questions.

ChatGPT helped me think with more clarity and depth.

I asked it to analyze my original writeup from two years ago and used prompts like:

➡️ “Ask me questions that will help me fill in missing context and tell a more complete story of this project.”

➡️ “What gaps or doubts might a hiring manager have after reading this? Help me address them.”

The results were kind of amazing. It jogged my memory, sharpened my narrative, and helped me articulate the thinking behind decisions I hadn’t fully explained before.

ChatGPT asked me questions like:

✅ What were your biggest bets in terms of design decisions?

✅ When did you push back or suggest an alternative?

✅ What part of a cut idea still made it into the final design?

✅ What did users say that challenged your assumptions?

Back then I only thought of the "what I did" and the final designs in the Figma file, but not the communication, considerations, trade-offs that happened during this project. These prompts and questions helped me uncover key moments I had overlooked—things that didn’t show up in the final deliverable, but actually demonstrated my product thinking and systems thinking.

What started as a rewrite became a much deeper reflection on how I approach design, collaboration, and problem-solving.

AI isn’t just a tool to generate content. Sometimes, the most powerful use is as a thinking companion—one that challenges your perspective, organizes your thoughts, and helps you bring your own ideas to the surface.

Highly recommend it if you’re working on a portfolio refresh, preparing for interviews, or just trying to tell your story with more clarity.