This post was originally published on Medium.
Sharing it here with some dev-specific tweaks!
As a self-taught frontend developer juggling between learning and building, I’m always looking for ways to be more productive...
As a self-taught frontend developer juggling between learning and building, I’m always looking for ways to be more productive. One of the most effective tools I’ve added to my daily workflow is ChatGPT.
It’s more than just a chatbot — it’s a planning assistant, bug hunter, idea generator, and debugging partner all in one.
In this post, I’ll walk you through how I use ChatGPT to speed up my projects — and how you can do the same.
1. Planning Features with ChatGPT
Before I start coding, I ask ChatGPT to help me break down the feature into smaller steps.
Example prompt:
"I want to build a dark mode toggle in a Next.js project. Help me plan the steps."
In seconds, I get a structured roadmap:
Add theme context
Store user preference
Create toggle button
Integrate Tailwind dark classes
Persist mode with localStorage
This planning saves me at least 30–60 minutes per feature.
2. Debugging Faster
When I get stuck on an error or weird behavior, instead of spending hours Googling, I paste the error into ChatGPT and ask:
"Why am I getting this error in a Next.js app?"
(paste code snippet)
In many cases, it helps me find the root cause faster than searching Stack Overflow.
3. Writing Helper Functions and Reusable Components
I often ask:
"Can you write a debounce function in TypeScript?"
"Give me a responsive Card component with Tailwind."
ChatGPT gives a ready-to-use code block, saving me time on common boilerplate.
4. Explaining Code I Don’t Understand
Sometimes I find code snippets online or in documentation that don’t fully make sense.
I just ask:
"Can you explain this code line by line?"
It gives me a breakdown in simple English, helping me learn while moving forward.
5. Improving Commit Messages
Yes, I even use it for Git!
"Write a clear commit message for fixing a dark mode bug where localStorage didn’t persist the theme."
It returns something like:
fix: persist dark mode theme using localStorage
Clean, consistent, and readable.
⚠️ What ChatGPT Can’t Do
While ChatGPT is powerful, it’s not magic.
- It sometimes gives outdated or incorrect answers
- It can't always understand complex project context
- It doesn't replace real debugging experience or documentation reading
- And yes — it can hallucinate code
I always double-check the outputs, especially before pushing anything to production.
It's a great assistant, but not a replacement for solid developer judgment.
💡 Final Thoughts
ChatGPT isn't just for asking questions — it's a power tool for developers.
It helps me plan smarter, debug faster, and stay in flow.
If you’re building real-world projects like I am, it can be the teammate you didn’t know you needed.
How are you using ChatGPT in your development workflow?
Let me know — I'm still learning too.
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