Let's talk about something super cool called AI prompting! It's like teaching a super smart computer how to understand what you want it to do. Think of it as giving instructions to a really helpful robot friend.
What is AI Prompting?
Have you ever asked a computer to write a story or answer a question? That's kind of what AI prompting is all about. But to get really good answers, you need to be good at giving instructions. This is called prompt engineering. It's like being a teacher for the AI, showing it exactly what you need. Instead of using complicated computer code, you just use your normal words! Prompt engineering is a really important skill because AI is becoming a big part of our lives, and knowing how to talk to it will help you do all sorts of cool things. We're going to learn how to give the AI special instructions so it can help you with your homework, write stories, or even come up with new ideas!
Why is Giving Good Instructions So Important?
Imagine you asked a friend to draw a picture, but you didn't tell them what to draw. They might draw anything! It's the same with AI. If you don't give it good instructions, you might not get the answer you were hoping for. Good prompts help the AI give you the right answers and do exactly what you want it to do. If you learn how to write good prompts, you'll get better, more useful, and clearer results from the AI. It's like having a secret code to get the best help from your robot friend!
Cool Ways to Write Great Instructions
There are lots of neat tricks to writing good prompts. Let's check some of them out:
- Be Super Clear and Tell It Exactly What You Want: Don't just say "write a story". That's like telling your friend to just "draw something." Instead, try saying "write a short story about a detective solving a mystery in a small coastal town". See how much clearer that is? The AI knows you want a story, it should be short, it's about a detective, there's a mystery, and it happens in a small town by the sea! Also, use clear instructions like "explain how artificial intelligence works in simple terms" instead of just "explain AI". The more clear you are, the better the answer will be.
- Give It Some Background Information: Imagine your friend has never been to the beach. If you tell them to draw a beach scene, they might not know what that looks like. It's the same with AI. You need to give it some context. For example, if you're asking for a story, you could say "the story is for kids between 12 and 15 years old". This helps the AI know what kind of words and ideas to use.
- Tell It What You Want the Answer to Look Like: Do you want a list? A story? A step-by-step guide? Tell the AI the format you want! Instead of saying "give me how to build a PC," try "give me a step-by-step guide on how to build a PC for beginners". Now the AI knows you want a guide, and it should be easy for someone who's just starting out.
- Show It What You Mean with Examples: If you have a good example of what you're looking for, show it to the AI! It's like showing your friend a picture of the kind of drawing you want.
- Don't Ask Too Much at Once: If you ask the AI to do too many things in one prompt, it might get confused. Instead of saying "tell me about the history of computers," try "write a timeline of major events in computer history formatted as a bullet list include five to seven key milestones with one sentence explaining each". This is more focused.
- Try, Try Again! If the first answer you get isn't quite right, don't give up! Just try changing your prompt and asking again. You can make it more specific or clearer. It's like asking your friend to redraw something but giving them new instructions.
- Use Action Words: Start your prompts with words like "explain," "list," "summarize," or "compare". This tells the AI exactly what you want it to do. For example, say "compare the benefits of solar energy versus wind energy" instead of "what are the benefits of solar energy versus wind energy".
- Tell It How to Sound: Do you want the AI to sound funny? Serious? Like a teacher? Tell it the tone you want! You could say "write a funny story about a cat who becomes a CEO" or "write a formal email to my boss about...".
- Pretend It's Someone Else (Personas): You can tell the AI to act like a specific person, like "You are a patent lawyer explain the legal process for patenting an invention in simple terms for a non-legal audience". This helps the AI give you answers like an expert in that field.
- Tell It What Not to Do: You can also tell the AI things you don't want it to talk about. For example, "write a three-paragraph article summarizing the pros and cons of wind energy for high school students avoid discussing financial incentives and focus only on environmental benefits".
- Break Big Tasks into Smaller Ones: If you have a really big thing you want the AI to do, try breaking it down into smaller steps. This can make it easier for the AI to handle.
Special Instructions for AI Voices
If you're talking to an AI that has a voice, like on the phone, there are some extra things to think about.
- Who is This Voice? Tell the AI its name and who it works for. Also, tell it what its job is and what it can and cannot do. This helps it stay focused.
- How Should It Talk? Give it some style rules. Should it be short and to the point? Should it be friendly and helpful? Should it not repeat itself? These rules help the AI sound natural and professional.
- What Steps Should It Follow? Tell the AI exactly what to do step by step in a conversation. For example, first it should say hello, then ask how it can help, then maybe give some information, and then say goodbye.
- Plan for Different Things That Might Happen: Think about all the different ways a conversation could go. What if someone says yes? What if they say no? Tell the AI what to do in each case.
- Help It Say Things Clearly: You can give the AI special instructions on how to say times, website addresses, email addresses, and phone numbers so they sound right.
AI Prompting is Always Getting Better
AI is learning new things all the time, and so is AI prompting. The important thing is to think clearly about what you want and try to explain it as best you can. There are even tools that can help you write good prompts. Remember, prompt engineering is a skill that everyone can learn!
Wrapping Up
Learning how to give good instructions to AI is a super useful skill. By being clear, giving context, and trying different techniques, you can unlock all the amazing things AI can do. So go ahead and start experimenting with giving prompts to your AI friends – you might be surprised at what they can do!
?? Ready to level up your AI game? ?? Tune into our Vlog Podcast for an insightful journey into the world of AI Prompting! ???
- Actionable techniques to craft prompts that get you the best results from AI models like ChatGPT and others.
- How to be crystal clear and specific in your instructions to avoid vague or irrelevant responses.
- The importance of setting the context and tailoring your prompts for different scenarios.
- Tips on defining the desired format for your AI's output, whether it's a list, a guide, or something else.
- The power of iteration and refinement to continuously improve your prompts and achieve your desired outcomes.
- How to leverage action words and define the tone to guide the AI's responses effectively.
- Insights into using personas to get more tailored and role-specific AI outputs.
- Considerations for crafting prompts for specialized applications like AI voice agents, including identity, style, and task breakdown.
Stop struggling to get the answers you need from AI! Our podcast will equip you with the essential skills to become a prompting pro! ?? Learn how to unlock the full potential of artificial intelligence and make it work for you. ??
FAQ:? About AI Prompting
- What is AI prompting or prompt engineering? AI prompting, also known as prompt engineering, is the practice of developing and optimizing prompts (the instructions and context you give to AI models) to efficiently use artificial intelligence for whatever task you are trying to accomplish. It's about guiding AI models using natural language, just like guiding a conversation with a friend. Instead of complex computer code, you use your normal everyday language to tell the AI what you want it to do. Prompt engineering is a critical skill set that will be needed for years to come.
- Why is it important to write good prompts? The quality of your prompt directly influences the quality of the AI's response. Good prompts help the AI give you the right answers and do exactly what you want it to do [Me, 23]. By crafting effective prompts, you can get better, more useful, accurate, and clearer results from AI.
- What are some key techniques for writing better prompts? There are many techniques to improve your prompts, including:
- What is context and why is it important? Setting the context involves providing necessary background information such as the target audience, industry, and goals. You cannot just expect AI to guess the context. Providing relevant context helps the AI understand the situation and deliver more relevant and tailored results.
- What is specificity and why is it important? It is very important to be specific in your prompts. Vague prompts can lead to inaccurate or irrelevant results. The more detail you give, the less the AI has to guess. Specificity helps the AI understand exactly what you want.
- How do I define the desired output format? Clearly specify the desired format of the output in your prompt. Whether you need a list, a step-by-step guide, a bullet point summary, or a specific document structure, stating this helps the AI deliver the information in a usable way.
- What is iterative prompting? Iterate and refine is the process of continuously improving your prompts based on the AI's responses. If the initial output is not satisfactory, you analyze what went wrong, adjust your prompt (e.g., by being more specific, providing better context, or changing the format), and resubmit it.
- How can action words improve prompts? Start your prompts with verbs like explain, list, summarize, or compare. This clearly tells the AI what action it should take.
- How can I define the tone of a response? When writing something like an email or a story, define the desired tone, such as formal, casual, or humorous. This helps the AI tailor its language and style accordingly.
- What are personas and how can I use them? You can enhance your prompts by assigning a specific role or persona to the AI. This guides the AI to act and respond in a manner consistent with that persona, reflecting the knowledge, style, and perspective of that role.
- How can I limit the scope of a prompt? If your prompt is too broad, the response might be overwhelming or off-topic. Narrow down your request to keep the response focused. You can also use words like "avoid" or "focus on" to set clear boundaries.
- Are there specific considerations for AI voice agents? Yes, when prompting AI voice agents, you should consider elements such as defining the agent's identity, setting style guardrails for its communication, creating a task breakdown with step-by-step instructions, and providing specific formatting for speech customization for things like time, website addresses, emails, and phone numbers. It's also important to give the agent the scope of its work and what it should do if asked something outside of that scope. For complex multi-prompt agents, each prompt should handle only one task, with instructions for transitions between prompts based on user responses.
- What is the "Golden Prompt Structure"? The "Golden Prompt Structure" or "Prompt formula" consists of three key components: Role, Task, and Context. Assigning a role guides the AI on who or what it should act like. Giving a clear and specific task provides detailed instructions. Providing context ensures the AI understands the situation and delivers relevant results.
- Should I focus on learning prompt engineering as a career? According to some sources, for the vast majority of people, prompt engineering is a skill, not a career in and of itself. It is a very important skill that everyone can use no matter their job. The focus should be on learning how to work with large language models to become more efficient and effective in your work. However, other sources mention the role of prompt engineer. It's likely that while dedicated "prompt engineer" roles might exist, the core skill of effective prompting will be valuable across many professions.
- What are system messages and custom instructions? The system message is a default or initial prompt provided to the AI model by its creator. It sets the stage for the interaction and guides the model on what it should or should not do. Custom instructions, as found in platforms like ChatGPT, allow you to set personalized preferences about your identity and how you want the AI to respond in all subsequent chats, acting like a "sub-system message".
- How can I organize my prompts? Creating a prompts database in tools like Notion is highly recommended for organization and reuse. This can involve creating a table with properties like Name, Type, Use Case, Output Format, and the actual prompt content. You can use features like tagging, filtering, sorting, and creating different views to manage your prompts effectively. You can also use buttons to quickly save new prompts. Grouping similar prompts together on a single page can also improve organization.
Remember, the more you use and experiment with AI, the better you'll get at crafting effective prompts.
