Recurring Reminders & AI Magic: A Story of Parking, Prompts & Productivity 🅿️🤖

Ever had one of those tiny life admin tasks that sounds simple — but ends up being a surprisingly tricky puzzle?

Well, mine was: renewing my mall carpark every month.

Simple, right?

Until they told me: “You must renew it exactly 4 days before the end of every month.”

That’s when I realized:

• February messes everything up.

• Outlook only lets you set fixed recurring dates.

• And suddenly... my "tiny" task became a logic problem. 😅

Here’s what I tried:

1️⃣ Create a custom .ics file manually. Nope — Outlook didn’t play nice. 2️⃣ Tried Power Automate. Great, but a bit too much effort for a parking reminder. 3️⃣ Set reminders manually for every month. Works. But… ugh, really?

🤯 Then it hit me: why not use an LLM?

I gave it a challenge: “Generate an Outlook-compatible calendar file (.ics) with a recurring appointment that happens 4 days before month-end — adjusting for month length, weekends, and Singapore public holidays. Make sure it’s at 6–7 PM, and skip any past months in 2025. Oh, and don’t forget a 15-min reminder alert!” ✅

After a few prompt tweaks... 🪄 BOOM — the perfect .ics file, fully automated. Well not exactly. I just imported the .ics file into my outlook.

🟢 Problem Solved.

💡 Takeaway:

Before LLMs, I had only 3 clunky options. Today, I created a tailored solution with just a smart prompt.

This isn’t just about carpark renewals. It’s about rethinking how we solve problems.

I’m now exploring all kinds of mini automations using simple prompts & agentic AI — one everyday hassle at a time.

What’s the most unexpected problem you’ve solved using AI?