Prompt Frameworks for Unlocking ChatGPT's Deep Research Capabilities

And Exactly How to Use Them

I love deep research—done right, it transforms surface-level questions into strategic clarity. After some structured experimentation, I've distilled my personal approach into 10 reusable prompt frameworks, explicitly designed to leverage ChatGPT’s deep research and search capabilities.

The frameworks reflect my own prompting style:

• Goal-Oriented and Context-Rich:
  I clearly set the strategic context and intended outcome upfront—prompts become precise tools rather than generic queries.

• Builder’s Intent:
  Every prompt is deliberately outcome-driven, optimized to directly inform products, refine strategies, or enhance decision-making workflows.

• Specificity Balanced with Flexibility:
  I provide clear constraints while leaving room for nuanced, creative exploration—essential for deep research.

• System-Aware Prompting:
  Frameworks explicitly leverage how ChatGPT works best, maximizing deep research accuracy and insight quality.

• Structured for Workflow Integration:
  These prompts aren't standalone queries; they're strategically sequenced tools, designed for deliberate use at different workflow stages to progressively deepen strategic insights.

A note before we jump in — my prompt writing style is VERY iterative. I rarely write one detailed prompt and let it do the heavy lifting. I like to see the intermediate steps and build from there. I often interrupt the LLM, making adjustments and changing the requirements on the fly. While this is a bit less efficient, I’ve found that it brings clarity to my thought process while giving me the outputs I want from the LLM.

Recommended Integration into Your Workflow:

• Early-Stage Exploration: Use frameworks 1, 2, and 7 (First-Principles, Socratic Inquiry, Rapid Evidence Review) with deep research and search to quickly build foundational knowledge.

• Mid-Stage Refinement: Deploy frameworks 4, 5, and 6 (Scenario Futurecasting, Six Hats, Analogical Synthesis) alongside your own documents and search for rich, well-rounded strategic exploration.

• Late-Stage Decision & Communication: Apply frameworks 3, 8, 9, and 10 (Inversion, Pros-Cons-Remedies, Role-Play Simulation, Strategy Canvas) in conjunction with your own documents, deep research, and visual canvas tools for sharp clarity, risk mitigation, and executive-ready communication.

With that, let’s dive straight into the frameworks, starting with one of my foundational favourites—the First-Principles Breakdown.

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1. First-Principles Breakdown

The First-Principles Breakdown approach systematically deconstructs complex problems, strategies, or technologies into their fundamental truths or building blocks. It deliberately challenges existing assumptions, conventions, and perceived constraints to isolate core elements. By doing so, it empowers clear thinking, reduces cognitive biases, and reveals innovative paths that traditional, analogy-based thinking might miss. This foundational clarity then allows you to logically reconstruct robust, defensible strategies or solutions from the ground up.

At What Point: Use this one for early-stage exploration or when confronting stuck or biased thinking.

Where: Clarifying product ideas, complex strategies, or new technologies.

How: Break down concepts to their fundamental building blocks, removing assumptions and biases, then rebuild solutions logically.

Prompt Template:

"Break down [complex problem, idea, technology, or strategy] into its fundamental principles. Use insights from deep research and the provided supporting documents ([e.g., technical specs, market research, user feedback]) to clearly identify hidden assumptions, perceived constraints, and foundational truths. Then, logically reconstruct this into a structured, unbiased analysis, explicitly highlighting unexplored opportunities."

Example Prompts:

• "Break down the business model of subscription-based SaaS products into their fundamental principles. Identify hidden assumptions about customer behavior and pricing strategies, then rebuild a logical model highlighting unexplored opportunities."

• "Deconstruct the key technological barriers to autonomous driving using first principles. Clearly list the fundamental components and assumptions, then logically identify areas where significant innovation is still needed."

• "Explain the core challenges of scalability in blockchain technologies from first principles. Highlight fundamental constraints, and propose logical pathways for overcoming these obstacles."

Use in combination with: Your own supporting documents (technical specs, market research) - add these to the prompt - and ‘deep research’ to validate foundational truths.

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2. Socratic Inquiry Chain

The Socratic Inquiry Chain is an iterative approach inspired by classical Socratic dialogue. It leverages ChatGPT to progressively deepen understanding by prompting the model to continually question and refine its own explanations. Each subsequent question reveals new nuances, surfaces overlooked subtleties, and challenges superficial assumptions. This method helps quickly build thorough expertise in complex or unfamiliar subjects by ensuring no stone remains unturned in the analysis.

At What Point: After initial baseline research, before diving into deeper expert-level understanding.

Where: Quickly mastering unfamiliar or complex scientific/technical topics.

How: Iteratively prompt ChatGPT to question its own initial explanations, progressively uncovering deeper insights.

Prompt Template:

"Briefly explain [complex or unfamiliar topic]. Then, iteratively deepen this explanation by critically questioning your initial response through [number of iterative cycles, e.g., 3–5] follow-up questions and answers. In each iteration, explicitly surface hidden nuances, clarify common misconceptions, and incorporate authoritative insights verified through deep research."

Example Prompts:

• "Briefly describe CRISPR gene editing. Now, deepen your explanation by self-questioning and answering through five iterative cycles, explicitly addressing risks, ethical issues, and technical complexities."

• "Summarize the main concepts behind Large Language Models. Follow up by iteratively challenging your summary with detailed questions that address potential misunderstandings, limitations, and future directions."

Use in combination with:
Search and deep research to verify accuracy and add authoritative context.

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3. Inversion (Devil’s Advocate)

Inversion, or playing the Devil’s Advocate, deliberately engages ChatGPT in skeptical, contrarian thinking to rigorously test strategic initiatives and decisions. This approach compels the model to systematically identify weaknesses, overlooked assumptions, and potential points of failure by imagining worst-case scenarios. In doing so, it helps decision-makers proactively mitigate risks, strengthen strategies, and guard against overly optimistic or biased planning.

At What Point: Late-stage decision-making, immediately prior to final commitment.

Where: Evaluating strategic initiatives, product launches, and significant business decisions.

How: Prompt the model to adopt a skeptical viewpoint and identify critical points of failure proactively.

Prompt Template:

"Imagine that [your strategic decision, product launch, or initiative] results in a significant failure ([specify worst-case outcome]). Using insights from deep research and the provided supporting documents ([e.g., strategic plans, market analysis, user feedback]), clearly outline the exact reasons behind this failure. Explicitly identify overlooked risks, hidden assumptions, and faulty logic. Finally, recommend proactive strategies or mitigations to prevent these points of failure."

Example Prompts:

• "Imagine our new AI-based recommendation system completely fails within the first six months after launch. Clearly outline why this failure occurred, detailing specific blind spots, faulty assumptions, and overlooked risks."

• "Consider our upcoming market entry strategy into Asia and assume it leads to significant financial loss. Analyze the exact reasons behind this outcome, emphasizing hidden assumptions or underestimated challenges."

• "Assume the decision to switch our company entirely to remote work severely damages productivity and culture. Identify the critical assumptions we made incorrectly, and suggest ways we could mitigate these risks in advance."

Use in combination with: Your own supporting strategic planning documents and deep research for thorough risk assessment.

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4. Scenario Futurecasting

Scenario Futurecasting involves generating multiple, diverse, and plausible visions of future developments related to a specific topic, technology, or market. It explicitly prompts the AI to explore optimistic, pessimistic, and moderate trajectories, enabling decision-makers to anticipate potential outcomes and their implications strategically. By visualizing and examining varied future possibilities, leaders can better prepare for uncertainties, allocate resources wisely, and create flexible strategic plans.

At What Point: Mid-to-late strategic planning stages, especially when uncertainty is high.

Where: Innovation foresight, long-term strategic planning, exploring market uncertainties.

How: Prompt for multiple plausible future scenarios, explicitly detailing strategic implications.

Prompt Template:

"Develop three distinct future scenarios for [specific technology, market, or trend] over [specific time horizon]:

• Optimistic scenario: characterized by rapid positive developments.

• Pessimistic scenario: involving significant setbacks or adverse conditions.

• Moderate scenario: depicting incremental, steady progress.

Clearly outline each scenario using authoritative insights from deep research and provided industry analyses ([e.g., market data, trend reports, competitive benchmarks]). For each scenario, explicitly detail the strategic implications and recommended actions our organization should consider."

Example Prompts:

• "Create three detailed scenarios for the evolution of generative AI adoption in the enterprise over the next five years: an optimistic scenario with rapid adoption and integration, a pessimistic scenario characterized by major setbacks and regulatory hurdles, and a moderate scenario of steady, incremental growth. Clearly outline strategic implications and recommended actions for each."

• "Envision three possible futures for electric vehicle (EV) market penetration globally by 2030—high adoption, low adoption, and moderate adoption—and explain the strategic consequences for traditional automakers."

• "Develop three distinct future scenarios for blockchain's role in supply chain management by 2028, covering optimistic widespread adoption, pessimistic regulatory pushbacks, and moderate incremental progress. Outline clear strategies our organization should consider for each scenario."

Use in combination with: Deep research and your own industry analyses to ensure scenario realism. Actually, ALWAYS use this one with deep research!

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5. Six Thinking Hats Analysis

The Six Thinking Hats Analysis method systematically guides ChatGPT through six distinct analytical lenses—facts (white hat), emotions and intuition (red hat), risks and potential negatives (black hat), optimistic benefits (yellow hat), creative alternatives (green hat), and structured overview or process (blue hat). This structured perspective-taking ensures a holistic, balanced exploration of decisions, providing clear, nuanced, and actionable insights for complex issues.

At What Point: Before making critical decisions, ensuring balanced consideration of all perspectives.

Where: Comprehensive decision-making, product reviews, or market-entry assessments.

How: Explicitly guide ChatGPT through sequential analytical perspectives: factual, emotional, risk-oriented, optimistic, creative, and procedural.

Prompt Template:

"Conduct a comprehensive Six Thinking Hats analysis for [decision, strategic initiative, or idea], systematically addressing each perspective:

• White Hat (Facts): Clearly outline relevant data and factual information.

• Red Hat (Emotions): Summarize emotional reactions and intuitive responses of key stakeholders.

• Black Hat (Risks): Identify specific potential negatives, risks, and critical obstacles.

• Yellow Hat (Benefits): Highlight explicit, optimistic benefits and opportunities.

• Green Hat (Creative Alternatives): Suggest creative or innovative alternatives to improve or enhance outcomes.

• Blue Hat (Structured Recommendation): Provide a clear, structured summary and actionable recommendation.

Incorporate authoritative insights from deep research and provided supporting documents ([e.g., user surveys, market data, internal reports]) to substantiate each analytical perspective."

Example Prompts:

• "Using the Six Thinking Hats method, evaluate our company's proposal to shift entirely to subscription-based pricing. Include clear insights covering factual data (market benchmarks, pricing models), emotional reactions (customer perceptions), risks (potential churn), benefits (stable revenue streams), creative alternatives (tiered models), and conclude with a structured final recommendation."

• "Conduct a Six Thinking Hats analysis of our planned expansion into emerging markets. Clearly structure your response by assessing the facts (market size, competitors), emotional reactions (internal team morale), risks (political instability, economic volatility), benefits (growth potential), creative strategies (joint ventures, localized branding), and finally provide a concise recommendation."

• "Evaluate the introduction of AI-driven customer service bots through the Six Thinking Hats framework. Methodically cover factual analysis (expected efficiency gains), emotional insights (customer satisfaction and frustrations), risks (loss of personal touch, technical issues), benefits (24/7 availability), creative alternatives (hybrid solutions), and deliver a structured strategic recommendation."

Use in combination with: Your own supporting documents (user surveys, market data) and optionally a canvas to visualise outcomes clearly.

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6. Analogical Synthesis

Analogical Synthesis is a creative reasoning technique prompting ChatGPT to explicitly draw comparisons between your current strategic challenge and analogous situations from entirely unrelated fields or historical contexts. This method unlocks novel perspectives and innovative solutions by borrowing insights from outside conventional industry or domain boundaries, stimulating creativity when traditional problem-solving methods fall short.

At What Point: When conventional thinking has reached a limit and fresh perspectives are needed.

Where: Creative problem-solving, innovation ideation, tough strategic problems.

How: Prompt for explicit cross-domain analogies to uncover novel insights and solutions.

Prompt Template:

"Identify two clear analogies from entirely unrelated fields, industries, or historical contexts that parallel our current challenge of [describe specific strategic challenge or issue]. For each analogy, explicitly:

• Explain the parallel clearly and concretely.

• Highlight key insights, lessons, or innovations from the analogous situation.

• Recommend specific, actionable strategies or ideas inspired by these analogies.

Incorporate authoritative insights verified through deep research and historical or cross-industry examples to ensure accuracy and applicability."

Example Prompts:

• "Identify two clear analogies from historical innovations or disruptions in completely different industries that parallel our current challenge of increasing customer retention in SaaS products. Clearly explain each analogy and suggest actionable strategies inspired by these parallels.

• "Our organization faces significant communication and coordination issues due to remote work. Provide two analogies from entirely unrelated fields (e.g., orchestras, space exploration, military logistics) and suggest practical solutions we could adopt based on these analogies."

• "Draw clear parallels between managing misinformation on social media platforms and controlling the spread of infectious diseases in public health. Outline specific strategies from epidemiology that we could effectively apply to manage misinformation."

Use in combination with: Search for historical or cross-industry examples, enhanced by deep research for accuracy.

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7. Rapid Evidence Review

The Rapid Evidence Review approach directs ChatGPT to quickly and systematically summarize complex topics by highlighting key findings, central debates, research gaps, and actionable implications. It mimics a concise yet thorough literature or market review, offering rapid comprehension and actionable insights, ideal for informing strategic decisions or briefing stakeholders efficiently.

At What Point: Early research phase or when needing rapid, concise insights for stakeholder briefings.

Where: Quick summaries of scientific research, technological trends, or industry knowledge.

How: Prompt structured summaries explicitly addressing findings, debates, gaps, and implications.

Prompt Template:

"Rapidly summarize the current state of knowledge on [specific scientific topic, technology, trend, or issue]. Explicitly structure your response to address:

• Key Findings: Clearly highlight the major established insights or breakthroughs.

• Ongoing Debates: Identify central discussions or controversies currently shaping the field.

• Research Gaps: Explicitly note significant unresolved questions or missing areas of knowledge.

• Strategic Implications: Clearly outline practical implications or actionable opportunities for [relevant stakeholder or business context].

Incorporate authoritative insights verified through deep research and recent sources to ensure accuracy and relevance."

Example Prompts:

• "Provide a structured overview of recent developments in renewable energy storage technologies, explicitly addressing key innovations, technical and economic debates, knowledge gaps, and potential business opportunities."

• "Rapidly summarize the latest research on generative AI ethics and regulation. Clearly identify key research findings, highlight ongoing industry and academic debates, note significant knowledge gaps, and outline strategic implications for technology firms."

Use in combination with: Deep research and search for verifying accuracy and currency of insights.

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8. Pros-Cons-Remedies List

The Pros-Cons-Remedies framework systematically guides ChatGPT to clearly outline advantages (pros), disadvantages (cons), and explicit practical solutions or mitigations (remedies) for identified disadvantages. This structured evaluation promotes balanced and rigorous decision-making by proactively addressing potential challenges alongside their solutions, ensuring well-informed and resilient strategic choices.

At What Point: Mid-stage decision-making, after shortlisting options, before final commitment.

Where: Evaluating strategic choices involving clear trade-offs, product features, or tech investments.

How: Prompt balanced, actionable assessments detailing pros, cons, and mitigations explicitly.

Prompt Template:

"Provide a structured Pros-Cons-Remedies analysis for [specific strategic decision, product feature, or technology investment]. Clearly outline:

• Pros: Explicit advantages, opportunities, and potential positive outcomes.

• Cons: Specific disadvantages, risks, and potential challenges.

• Remedies: Practical, actionable solutions or mitigations for each identified disadvantage or risk.

Incorporate authoritative insights and verify accuracy through deep research and the provided supporting documents ([e.g., internal reports, market data, technical assessments])."

Example Prompts:

• "List the pros and cons of integrating GPT-based chatbots into our customer support systems. Clearly provide realistic mitigation strategies for each identified disadvantage or risk."

• "Evaluate adopting remote-first working permanently. Identify clear advantages, potential drawbacks, and explicitly outline effective remedies or strategies to manage each identified con."

• "Analyze switching our technology infrastructure entirely to cloud-based solutions. Present a balanced list of benefits and risks, providing detailed practical solutions or mitigations for each of the risks identified."

Use in combination with: Your own supporting documentation and deep research to enhance the rigor of identified risks and remedies.

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9. Role-Play Simulation

Role-Play Simulation prompts ChatGPT to realistically embody and simulate interactions between multiple stakeholders, capturing their distinct perspectives, reactions, and concerns. This approach uncovers interpersonal dynamics, identifies friction points, and predicts emotional and rational reactions to new decisions or changes. It's particularly effective for preempting stakeholder objections, aligning internal teams, and refining communication strategies before implementation.

At What Point: Late in planning stages, before rollout or communication, ensuring stakeholder readiness and minimizing pushback.

Where: Anticipating stakeholder reactions, user experiences, organizational dynamics around new decisions.

How: Simulate realistic dialogues or stakeholder interactions explicitly surfacing friction points.

Prompt Template:

"Simulate a realistic dialogue involving [list specific stakeholders involved] discussing [specific decision, change, or issue]. Explicitly:

• Embody each stakeholder's distinct perspective, emotional reactions, practical concerns, and rational objections.

• Clearly highlight friction points, misunderstandings, or areas of disagreement.

• Surface key unresolved questions or objections requiring attention before rollout or communication.

Ground the dialogue in authoritative insights from provided stakeholder research, customer feedback, and deep research to ensure authenticity and accuracy."

Example Prompts:

• "Simulate a detailed conversation involving a product manager, a senior engineer, and a skeptical long-term customer discussing our decision to sunset an old but popular feature. Clearly highlight their concerns, objections, and questions."

• "Imagine a dialogue between HR, team leaders, and front-line employees discussing the upcoming shift to hybrid remote work. Explicitly surface each stakeholder’s emotional reactions, practical objections, and unresolved concerns."

• "Create a realistic interaction involving a privacy-conscious customer, a data scientist, and a compliance officer discussing the introduction of advanced user-data-driven personalization in our product. Identify their differing viewpoints, ethical concerns, and objections."

Use in combination with: Your own stakeholder research or customer feedback, optionally visualized using a canvas.

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10. Strategy Synthesis Canvas

The Strategy Synthesis Canvas guides ChatGPT to distill extensive research and analysis into a concise, structured strategic memo or executive summary. This approach clearly outlines strategic objectives, relevant market context, key insights, strategic options (each with explicit pros and cons), and concludes with a strongly justified recommendation and immediate next steps. It ensures clarity, coherence, and actionable guidance for executive-level decision-making and broader stakeholder alignment.

At What Point: After comprehensive research, immediately before executive-level communication or broader organizational dissemination.

Where: Concise strategic summaries, executive memos, translating extensive analysis into actionable strategy.

How: Prompt explicitly structured strategic summaries including goals, context, insights, strategic options, and clear recommendations.

Prompt Template:

"Convert the extensive analysis conducted on [specific strategic topic, decision, or initiative] into a concise, structured executive strategy memo. Explicitly structure your response into the following sections:

• Strategic Objectives: Clearly define our core goals and intended outcomes.

• Relevant Context: Summarize essential market, competitive, or industry context based on deep research and supporting documentation ([specify documents]).

• Key Insights: Highlight the three most critical insights derived from the analysis.

• Strategic Options: Clearly present viable strategic alternatives, explicitly listing pros and cons for each.

• Recommended Strategy: Provide a strongly justified recommendation.

• Immediate Next Steps: Clearly outline actionable next actions and responsibilities.

Ensure accuracy, clarity, and actionable recommendations by grounding your synthesis in the provided extensive supporting documentation, deep research, and visual summaries if available."

Example Prompts:

• "Summarize our extensive analysis on entering the Asian market into a concise executive strategy memo. Clearly structure it around our key strategic objective, market context, the three most critical insights discovered, strategic options we considered (each with clearly listed pros and cons), the recommended strategy with rationale, and immediate next steps for implementation."

• "Convert the detailed research conducted on integrating generative AI into our existing product ecosystem into a structured strategy memo suitable for executive review. Include clear sections on objectives, industry and competitive context, the top insights derived, strategic alternatives evaluated with explicit pros and cons, a robust recommendation, and clearly outlined next actions."

• "Create a clear and concise strategic synthesis summarizing our recent customer research initiative. Clearly articulate our goals, customer context, key findings, strategic paths forward (detailing pros and cons for each), our recommended course of action with justification, and immediate steps for the product and marketing teams."

Use in combination with: Your own extensive supporting documents and analysis, summarized visually or structured clearly via a canvas.

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Structured prompting can greatly enhance your strategic thought process. Combine these prompt frameworks strategically with deep research, search, canvas visualization, and your own rich internal documentation for exceptional outcomes.

Which combination resonates most with your style or current project? Would love your perspective.