Everyday AI Podcast Episode Summary

Podcast: Everyday AI Podcast – An AI and ChatGPT Podcast
Host: Jordan Wilson
Episode: Google Sheets and Gemini: 5 ways to use Gemini AI to save time and work smarter
Date: December 31, 2025

Overview of the Episode

Jordan Wilson delves into Gemini AI’s new capabilities within Google Sheets, highlighting five time-saving ways to use this overlooked feature in everyday spreadsheet work. Throughout the episode, Jordan emphasizes practical use, easy adoption—even for non-technical users—and real-world examples that demonstrate how Gemini can revolutionize spreadsheet tasks from data analysis to generating content at scale. The episode is energetic, hands-on, and geared toward making listeners more productive by putting cutting-edge AI to work in familiar tools.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

Why Gemini in Google Sheets Matters

• Underrated Release: Despite major recent AI announcements, the new Gemini feature in Google Sheets is immensely powerful but under-discussed.
• Relevance: Most professionals spend significant time in spreadsheets; AI enhancements here can deliver tangible productivity gains.
• Personal Take: Jordan admits he initially dismissed Gemini in Workspace due to early poor performance, but now finds it “really freaking good” and transformative ([05:02]).

“If you can type, you know, three or four letters, you can start making, taking advantage of it right away.”
— Jordan Wilson ([07:03])

Core Functionality of Gemini in Sheets

• Natural Language Prompts: Interact via sidebar chat or cell functions using plain language (no need for code or advanced spreadsheet skills).
• Available to Paid Users: Requires a paid Google Workspace account; integration with Gmail and Drive provides contextual responses.
• Capabilities Include:
  • Creating tables
  • Analyzing data and presenting insights
  • Generating formulas, charts, and graphs
  • Summarizing and pulling together information across Workspace apps

“Being able to create little widgets, little dashboards with natural language is such, I think, an untapped level up for everyday non-technical people.”
— Jordan Wilson ([13:00])

Five Practical Time-Saving Tasks with Gemini AI

1. Discovering What's Possible ([21:00])

• Unlocking Hidden Value: AI isn’t limited to what you explicitly ask—it can show you new, valuable actions.
• Example: Using Gemini to suggest five AI commands that would save time or create value in a sheet of podcast reviews, such as summarizing sentiment or predicting ratings.
• Takeaway: Let AI surface insights and possibilities, not just automate your known needs.

“Discovering what's possible is actually a big unlock that people aren't thinking about... large language models are smarter than us all.”
— Jordan Wilson ([22:05])

2. Generating Instant Dashboards ([26:25])

• Dashboards on Demand: Ask Gemini to generate dashboards highlighting key findings from data (e.g., download stats).
• Automates Visualization: Gemini creates relevant charts, graphs, and summaries, saving time on manual setup and potentially identifying important trends you might miss.
• Iteration: You can ask Gemini follow-up questions to refine or expand dashboards (“find me five more interesting trends that you can graph and make them visual”).

“It instantly built me out a couple of really helpful bar charts... and I didn't even have to tell, you know, give me the top 10 episodes by last 90 days...”
— Jordan Wilson ([28:12])

3. Running Sentiment Analysis (with Gems) ([35:05])

• Text Analysis at Scale: Run advanced sentiment or theme extraction on large volumes of qualitative data directly in Sheets.
• Custom Gems: Use Google’s “Gems” (like GPTs for Gemini) or natural language in the new =AI() formula to extract nuanced information such as major content themes from reviews.
• Results: Instant classification of customer feedback into categories like “practical knowledge” or “career acceleration.”

“Think of how long it would take me to pull certain sentiment... now I can get in literally seconds with Gemini in sheets.”
— Jordan Wilson ([38:40])

4. Creating Content at Scale ([41:50])

• Content Generation: Gemini can automate content creation, from pulling structured data from the web (e.g., top Chicago restaurants with ratings) to generating custom text (email subject lines, product descriptions).
• End-to-End Workflows: Start from raw data and build layers—descriptions, pitches, email content, etc.—all within one sheet.

“You don't even have to start with a spreadsheet... Gemini does a great job at pulling in up-to-date and relevant information.”
— Jordan Wilson ([43:05])

5. Spotting Non-Obvious Trends ([48:13])

• Advanced Analysis: Prompt Gemini to uncover subtle patterns and relationships in large datasets that even a seasoned data analyst might miss.
• Example Trends Identified:
  • Niche deep dives drive more downloads than general news episodes
  • Earlier weekday releases perform better
  • “Google” and “Gemini” in titles outperform “Microsoft” or “ChatGPT”
  • Longer titles for niche topics work best

“Sometimes you will get more out of seeing how a model like this thinks through your spreadsheet than maybe the... 10 trends... that are maybe off target.”
— Jordan Wilson ([50:40])

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “It's almost like, what is Gemini doing in these different workspace? It's not like that anymore. It is really freaking good.”
  — Jordan Wilson ([06:48])

• “If you're someone that spends... an hour a day in spreadsheets, you can't afford to not use this.”
  — Jordan Wilson ([55:09])

• “I'm using it almost like a brainstorming partner in spreadsheets. I'm okay at spreadsheets... But it's really looking beyond and beneath kind of the actual stats in your spreadsheet.”
  — Jordan Wilson ([56:09])

Important Segment Timestamps

• [05:02] — Jordan’s early take on Gemini and how it has changed
• [13:00] — Core benefits and use cases of Gemini in Sheets
• [21:00] — Task 1: Discovering what's possible
• [26:25] — Task 2: Instant dashboard generation
• [35:05] — Task 3: Sentiment analysis using Gems and formulas
• [41:50] — Task 4: Creating content from structured/unstructured data
• [48:13] — Task 5: Spotting non-obvious trends in your data
• [50:40] — Guidance on reviewing AI’s method of analysis
• [55:09] — Strong endorsement to use Gemini if you regularly work in Sheets

Tone and Language

Jordan maintains a conversational, energetic, and encouraging tone, mixing expert insights and hands-on walkthroughs. The explanations are approachable, de-jargonized, with frequent invitations for listeners to experiment and see the value themselves.

Final Thoughts

This episode offers a wealth of practical, immediately actionable tips for anyone in a business or data-driven role. If you use Google Sheets—even occasionally—the integration of Gemini AI is positioned as a must-try, not just for automation but for true productivity boosts, creativity, and deeper insights.

For more:

• Newsletter and video recap: youreverydayai.com
• Contact and further training: See episode show notes and website
• Sora 2 invite code giveaway: Details towards the episode’s end