Welcome to the final post of my three part series on getting the most out of Chat GPT. Writing an effective prompt is the key to getting the response you desire.
Content of the Prompt
Clarity: Avoid vague prompts. Instead of, “Tell me about the history of running.” You may instead try: “Tell me about the earliest known records of running as a sport.” Including relevant details will narrow the scope of the response.
Context: Mention your specific goal and include any background information. Instead of, “What are some running tips?” try, “What are running tips for a beginner training for a half marathon.”
Ask for examples or to create a guide: To be even more useful, you may ask Chat GPT to further clarify your prompt. To build on our last prompt try, “Create a detailed training schedule for a beginner runner training for a half marathon. The length of training is two months. There should be two rest days scheduled per week.” Remember to specify any conditions you have for the instructions or guides.
Open-ended questions: Just like you should if trying to have a good conversation with a friend, ask Chat GPT open-ended questions. This will ensure that you get more detailed responses. The results for “Should I run every day?” provides a response as to why you need to listen to your body. “How often should I run?” however, provides you with a detailed running schedule based on your level of fitness and experience.
Formatting: This is one of my favorite tips because it helps keep answers concise. Mention how you would like your response to be formatted within the prompt. Here’s an example: “Make a numbered list of the top ten grossing movies of all time. Please include a sentence about how much it grossed after each title.”
Tone: Being polite to Chat GPT is optional. However, keep in mind that the tone of your prompt may affect the output results. A polite and professional tone will likely result in an answer which is more conversational. A direct tone may provide a more concise answer. AI writing tends to include filler, so remember that you can specify complexity, conciseness, and length within your prompt. If the answer doesn’t match your specifications, ask Chat GPT to regenerate the response, for example: “Regenerate your response in a more direct and concise tone.”
Prompt Templates
Here are some formatted prompt templates to get you started:
“I’m a [job title]. I need to do [writing task]. This is what that should sound like: [specify tone or paste example]. Format the response by [formatting preference].
“Please analyze the following text and provide a [describe desired length] summary: [insert text].”
“Generate procedures on how to [any task]. Assume I am a [proficiency level].”
“I want to write a [insert task] about [insert topic]. Create an outline with [specifications].”
“Roleplay the following scenario: [insert scenario ex. a challenging conversation].”
“Edit the following text for [errors, conciseness, clarity etc.]: [insert text].”
“Analyze this data set for [desired insight]: [data set]”
“Assess the [insert factor, ex. top 5 risks] of [project].”
As you use Chat GPT, I’d recommend saving your best prompts for tasks that recur. That could be as simple as saving a text document with your commonly used prompts. If a prompt isn’t what you desired, keep asking for refinements.
What are your favorite prompts? Let me know in the comments!
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