So your company has rolled out Copilot, but you don’t really know how to use it yet. Maybe you’ve seen the icon pop up in Word, Outlook or Teams. Maybe someone has told you it will “save time” or “change the way we work”, but no one has actually shown you where to begin. If that sounds familiar, you’re not alone. Most people are still figuring it out. The good news is that Copilot does not need to be complicated. At its best, it is a practical assistant that can help you draft, summarise, organise and improve everyday work.
Start with plain English
You do not need to know any special technical language to use Copilot. In fact, the easiest way to start is to write the way you would speak to a helpful colleague. Instead of typing “optimise document”, try something more specific, like “rewrite this so it is clearer and easier for a customer to understand” or “turn these rough notes into a short email”. Clear, plain instructions usually get you a much better result.
Give it context
Copilot works best when you give it a bit of context. Tell it who the work is for, what tone you want and what the final output should look like. For example, “write a one-page summary for a busy manager, focusing on the decision needed and the next steps” is much more useful than “write a summary”. If you want something friendly, professional, short, detailed or easy to skim, say that upfront.
Use it for first drafts, not final answers
One of the best ways to use Copilot is to get past the blank page. We have all sat there staring at a document, trying to work out how to begin. Copilot can give you a first draft, an outline, a meeting summary or a simple action list. The important thing is to treat the answer as a starting point. Read it, question it, and then add your own judgement, detail and voice.
Ask follow-up questions
You also do not need to get the perfect response on the first try. If the first version sounds too formal, ask Copilot to make it warmer. If it is too long, ask for a shorter version. If it misses the point, explain what needs to change. It is a bit like working with someone new: the more direction you give, the more useful the output becomes.
Always check the details
It is also worth saying that Copilot is not perfect. It can misunderstand what you mean, leave out important context or use wording that does not sound quite right. Before you send, share or publish anything, check the facts, names, dates and tone. This matters most when you are writing to customers, preparing reports, working on policies or creating anything that may influence a decision.
Try a few simple prompts
If you are not sure what to ask, try a few low-risk prompts first. Here is a list that the Propelle team suggest you start with:
- Weekly review: Summarise my emails, chats, and meetings from last week and list key actions.
- Daily priorities: Based on everything today, what are my top 3 priorities?
- Project status: Summarise the current status of [project] using my recent emails, chats, and documents.
- Coordinate work: Based on our emails and chats, what are the next steps for this project?
- Book a meeting: Find a time for a meeting with [person/team] that works for everyone this week. Include a meeting room.
- Improve your schedule: Analyse my calendar this week and suggest where I can reduce meetings or create focus time.
- Prepare for meetings: Prepare me for my next meeting by summarising related emails, key topics, and actions.
- Convert data into a presentation: Convert this document into a presentation with key messages per slide for an executive audience.
- Structure content: Turn this into a structured report with headings and bullet points.
- Analyse data: Analyse this data and highlight trends, risks, and key insights. Explain what this dataset shows in plain language.
- Save time: Summarise this document in five bullet points
- Win over colleagues and clients: Make this email clearer and more polite
- Be prepared: Draft an agenda for a 30-minute project meeting
- Get organised: Turn these notes into a simple action
The best advice is to start small. Do not try to use Copilot for everything on day one. Pick one task that usually takes more time than it should, such as drafting an email, summarising notes or cleaning up a document. Use Copilot to get started, then make the final version your own. That is where it becomes genuinely useful: not as a replacement for your thinking, but as a tool that helps you move faster and work more clearly.