The 3-question check: which messages are worth running past AI
Most of what you write at work doesn't need a second opinion from ChatGPT or Copilot. Omni Calculator surveyed 705 US adults who use AI to write (published 31 August 2026):
79% have rewritten something based on AI's input, even when they already believed the original was fine.
3 in 4 have delayed sending or held back something they thought was ready, to get AI's opinion first.
1 in 3 feel less confident in their own writing since they started using AI.
And in Omni's June 2026 survey, half of workers (51%) said they'd rather get a slightly messy message from a coworker than a polished AI one.
So check the few messages that can cost you, and send the rest as you wrote them.
What you need
The message you're about to send
ChatGPT, Claude or Copilot, only for the messages that pass the check below
The 3 questions
Before you paste a message into AI, ask yourself:
Does it have money in it? A price, an invoice, a refund, a budget.
Is it going to a customer?
Did I write it while annoyed?
If the answer to all 3 is no, read it once and send it.
When one answer is yes
Don't ask AI to "improve this". That asks for a rewrite, and you'll get one even when the message was fine. Ask what's unclear instead. Paste this above your message:
What's unclear or easy to misread in this message? Don't rewrite it. List at most 3 things, and say "nothing" if it's clear.
Fix those yourself, in your own words, and send it.
The mistake to avoid
Skipping the check on the messages that matter. Customer messages, anything with money and anything written in a bad mood still get a second look. The point is to stop checking the Slack reply to your teammate, not to stop checking everything.