In order to do any of that, however, you have to be able to create a prompt. A prompt is a set of instructions given to AI, which instructs the AI to give the response that the user is looking for. It can be as simple as asking a question, but vague questions often get vague or inaccurate responses that are not very useful.
The trick is to ask the question the right way by giving AI the context, clarity, and specific instructions that helps the AI to provide the best response. Here are a few tricks that you can use to get a better, more accurate and more detailed response.
These tips will work with whatever AI Model you are using, Google Gemini, Microsoft Copilot, Chat GPT, etc.
Tip 1: Be Specific
When prompting AI, you should be as clear and specific as you can. Doing so helps the AI to focus in on what you are asking for rather than giving vague answers that aren't very helpful.
Here are a couple of examples.
- Vague: What should I have for dinner?
- Specific: I have chicken breasts, rice and broccoli. (list anything you have) Can you give me a 20 minute recipe that uses minimal dishes and is mildly spicy?
Or:
- Vague: How do I clean my house?
- Specific: I have a small two‑bedroom apartment with a dog. Can you create a 30‑minute cleaning routine focused on the kitchen and living room, using only vinegar, baking soda, and microfiber cloths?
Use as many concrete details as you can such as numbers, timelines, details, dates, etc.
Tip 2: Add Context
A little background information helps the AI to understand the unique situation you are seeking help with. It's like telling the GPS in your car the full address of where you are going rather than saying "take me somewhere."
Adding context helps the AI to...
- understand your goal, audience, your situation, your tone and your background knowledge.
- If AI knows the boundaries of the task you are asking it to do, it is much less likely to wander off topic or invent new details that aren't true.
- It helps the AI to solve the right problem.
- I'm writing a blog post for beginners...
- I'm looking for a wonderful recipe to impress my girl with...
- I'm helping mom to save money on her TV Bill...
Tip 3: Assign a Role
Another way to help to help AI focus in on what you are actually looking for is to assign it a role. Assigning a role is like choosing the person you want to talk to.
- You are a Michelin Star Chef...
- You are a professional travel agent helping me to plan a trip...
- You are a professional home organizer...
- Write like a pirate...
Assigning a role helps the AI to understand what perspective you are looking for, it will focus in and use the proper terminology, and it will give the response in the style and tone of the .
Tip 4: Specify the Desired Response Format
You can ask the AI to format the response any way you like.
- Please help me to write an email to my child's teacher...
- Use bullet points...
- Give me a step by step numbered list...
- Write a 200 word summary...
Asking for a specific format will help the AI to provide more usable answers that you can just copy and paste right into an email, social media post, or a document.
Conclusion:
These four tips are just a few of the simple, practical ways to turn AI from a guessing machine into a genuinely helpful tool. When you give AI clear details, context, a role, and a format, you’re essentially handing it the blueprint for the exact answer you want. The more direction you provide, the better and more reliable your results will be.
