What is Prompting? — Tips for Instructing AI
Prompting simply means how you write your message to AI. A good prompt gets a good answer. A bad prompt leaves AI guessing.
Bad and good prompts
Bad ones:
- “Write something”
- “Make a recipe”
- “Can you help me”
Good ones:
- “I’m a teacher. Write a short email to parents about the start of the school year. Tone: friendly and clear.”
- “I have chicken, rice, and bell pepper in my fridge. Suggest three easy meals. I’m a terrible cook.”
- “Explain Signal messaging app’s encryption to my 70-year-old mother who’s afraid of hackers.”
The difference is obvious. A good prompt tells AI who you are, what you want, and what style to use.
Practical tips
Always say who you are — “I’m a small business owner” or “I’m retired.” It helps AI pick the right tone and vocabulary.
Give your goal and set constraints. “Maximum 100 words,” “Use simple words,” or “Format it as a table” all help nail the result. And if you have an example of what you want the output to look like, include it.
The most important tip: if the answer isn’t good, correct it. AI doesn’t get offended. You can say “That was too long, make it shorter” or “The tone is too formal, make it more casual.”
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