how to write better prompts for ChatGPT

How to use ChatGPT six times better.

At first glance, using ChatGPT may seem like a piece of cake. All you need to do is ask a question or make a request, and voila, the AI-generated response pops up on your screen.

But let's face it: sometimes, you don't get the exact answer you were hoping for. Cue frustration.

So, how can you ensure that the almighty ChatGPT understands your request and delivers the response you need?

That's where crafting the perfect prompt comes into play.

In this guide, we'll delve into the nitty-gritty of making effective prompts for generative AI like ChatGPT. Drawing from my own experience, I'll provide you with expert tips and tricks that will help you get the most out of your interactions with this powerful tool.

But wait, there's more! I'll also share some sample prompts in the next blog that you can use for common purposes, whether you're a high school or college student. So buckle up and get ready to master the art of interacting with ChatGPT like a pro.

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If you don’t have much time, here are some actionable insights for you:

1. Define the task clearly and concisely.

2. Provide examples of the results desired

3. Be specific and consistent

4. Don’t be simple

5. Role play

6. Test and refine your prompt

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This guide is written on the assumption that you know clearly what you need ChatGPT to accomplish and that you are finding ways for it to do what you want it to.

But first, what is a prompt?

In order to make ChatGPT generate results that better match our expectations, we first must learn what a prompt is, and how it works. When we grasped the basics of prompting, we can better understand the techniques to better our querries.

What a prompt is:

A prompt is simply a text that guides an AI system to generate a desired output.

A good prompt is the key to unlocking an AI system's full potential. It provides crucial context, lays out the user's expectations, and steers the system towards the desired outcome.

On the flip side, a bad prompt can lead to confusion, errors, and irrelevant or even nonsensical outputs.

How ChatGPT ‘read’ the prompt

ChatGPT uses a process called “natural language processing” to analyze the text of your prompt. This involves breaking down the text into its individual components, such as words and phrases, and examining the relationships between them.

Once the text has been analyzed, ChatGPT uses a machine learning algorithm to generate a response. The algorithm has been trained on a massive amount of text, including books, articles, and websites, to learn how to recognize patterns in language and generate responses that sound like they came from a human.

Caution: ChatGPT’s goal is to generate responses that ‘sound like human’, not to generate accurate or evidence-based responses. So, always make sure you fact-check the answers it returns to you.

When generating a response, ChatGPT considers the context of the prompt. This includes things like the topic being discussed, the tone of the prompt, and any other relevant information that might be important for generating an appropriate response.

Finally, the algorithm generates a response that it believes is most appropriate based on the analysis of the prompt and the context in which it was given.

The more data ChatGPT is trained on, the better it becomes at understanding language and generating responses that are both accurate and natural-sounding.

So, whether you're a seasoned AI expert or a curious beginner, mastering the art of crafting effective prompts is essential. And here are some simple guidelines that you can follow to improve your prompting game:

How to improve your prompting:

1. Define the task clearly and concisely.

A good prompt should state the goal of the task, the output formats, and any constraints or requirements.

For example, if you want the system to summarize a news article, you can write something like: "Please write a summary of the following article in one paragraph. The summary should include the main points and the source of the article, all written in bullet points."

This way, the system knows what to do and what to avoid.

2. Provide examples and instructions.

If you have some examples of the result you want, it is a good idea to put those examples into your prompt. You could provide some examples of inputs and outputs, and explain how they are related (the logic behind how you can get the outputs from the inputs).

This can help the system learn from existing data and follow the logic and style of the task. This can be helpful especially in coding or mathematics problems that you are trying to solve.

For example:

Another example of a prompt giving input and output, and the relation between them:

3. Be specific and consistent.

You should make your prompts specific and consistent in terms of tone, style, length, and format. Avoid being vague or ambiguous about what you want or expect from the system.

For example, if you want the system to generate a review of a movie, you can write something like: "Please write a review of the movie 'The Matrix' in three sentences. The review should state your opinion of the movie, give some reasons for that opinion, and rate the movie out of five stars." This way, the system knows how to express your opinion and how to measure your satisfaction.

5. Break the ‘simple’ rule

One of the main pieces of advice you might hear about making prompts for AI is: “Keep it simple.”

Don’t.

Simple prompts often do not provide enough context for the chatbot to fully understand the user's intentions or needs. Simple prompts lead to generic, boring results, which are even more disastrous if you are using these AIs for creative purposes.

Twist them a little bit; making more complex prompts with additional context or details can help the chatbot better understand the user's needs and provide more accurate and helpful responses.

For example, prompt 1 (more simple):

Prompt 2 (more complex):

Don't be afraid to go to infinity and beyond while instructing artificial intelligence.

5. Roleplay

ChatGPT's default behavior isn't always sufficient to achieve your goals.

This is the time to give ChatGPT a role.

Imagine that you want to prepare for an English-speaking exam. You can make ChatGPT pretend to be an English tutor by instructing it to "act as an English tutor” and adding further information to the prompt about what you want it to do.

You can improve the roleplay by thinking about the person you want to ask and trying to imagine their personality, mannerisms, and speech patterns. Consider what they might say in response to your question and how they might react, and then put it in your prompt for ChatGPT to follow.

For example:

Trivia: Some people even use roleplay to get past OpenAI’s policy to generate some violent or explicit content. This action is called “jailbreak”.

6. Test and refine your prompt.

A lot of times, you don’t get what you want the first time. That’s totally fine.

But don’t create a new chat just yet!

You should try to test and refine your prompt based on feedback from the system and the user. Imagine teaching your own kid to do something that he/she does for the first time.

Try different inputs and outputs and see how the system responds. Check for errors, inconsistencies, or irrelevancies in the output. Feedback and modify your prompt accordingly to improve its clarity, accuracy, and relevance.

For example, if you find that the system generates summaries that are too long or too short for your liking, you can adjust your prompt by adding or removing words or sentences.

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Even if you don’t want to write your own prompt, you can:

a. Ask the AI for help

If you need help coming up with prompts to ask ChatGPT, just ask it to generate some for you. It's quick and easy. You can get some inspiration for your conversation in no time.

b. Buy a prompt

If you are in a rush and need some high-quality prompts for your conversation with ChatGPT?

Well, you're in luck because there's a marketplace where you can buy them! Simply browse through the available prompts, select the ones you like, and purchase them. It's that easy! These prompts are created by skilled writers and are tailored to fit ChatGPT's responses perfectly.

So, instead of struggling to come up with prompts, you can now save time and get professionally written prompts from the marketplace.

Try it out and see how it works here.

c. Find a prompt in forums

There are plenty of forums out there where you can find pre-written prompts and conversation starters.

One great place to start is on Reddit. There are several subreddits dedicated to AI language models, like ChatGPT, Midjourney, and so on, where people share their own prompts and questions. You can also participate in discussions and ask for help coming up with your own prompts.

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In a nutshell, creating prompts for ChatGPT is all about getting creative and thinking outside the box. It's not just about asking a question, it's about crafting an experience that truly engages and challenges our AI counterparts.

So if you're ready to take your prompts to the next level, start by thinking about the input, output, and logic of your question. What do you want to achieve, and how can you use language to get there? Don't be afraid to experiment (it’s free!), and remember that the best prompts often come from unexpected places.

At the end of the day, ChatGPT is here to help us achieve our goals and push the boundaries of what's possible with AI. So let's roll up our sleeves, get creative, and start writing some killer prompts that will take us to new heights of innovation and discovery!

That’s it. In the next blog, I’ll be writing about some sample prompts that you can use in your work and study. See you in the next blog!