Stop naming the model first
Models change. Your method should not. Write the job, the constraints, and how you will know it worked. Then paste that into whatever you are using this month.
A prompt is a brief. If you would not send it to a junior hire, do not send it to a model.
The five-part brief
| Part | What to write | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Role | Who is answering, at what seniority | You are a content strategist reviewing a B2B landing page. |
| Job | The deliverable in one sentence | Rewrite the hero so a VP of marketing can say yes or no in ten seconds. |
| Constraints | Length, tone, facts you must not invent, audience | 120 words. No slogans. Do not mention competitors. Dutch market. |
| Examples | One good, one bad, or a snippet of the house style | Good: “Ship the audit in 14 days.” Bad: “Unlock synergistic AI-powered growth.” |
| Check | How you will reject the output | If it uses the word “unlock,” “leverage,” or “landscape,” rewrite. |
Constraints that actually bite
Vague constraints get ignored. Put numbers and bans on the page.
- Length: “max 120 words,” not “keep it short”
- Sources: “only use facts from the pasted notes,” not “be accurate”
- Audience: “CFO who hates slides,” not “stakeholders”
- Format: “markdown table with these five columns,” not “make it structured”
- Ban list: three words or moves you never want to see
When the output is wrong
Do not start over. Diagnose.
- Too generic: you described a category, not a job. Add the audience and the decision.
- Too long: you asked for thinking and a deliverable. Split them. “List assumptions, then write the email.”
- Invented facts: you did not paste the source. Paste it. Say “if it is not in the notes, say you do not know.”
- Wrong tone: give a 40-word sample of the voice you want, and one sentence of the voice you do not.
- Almost right: quote the broken line and say what to change. One edit per turn.
A paste-ready skeleton
Copy this. Fill the brackets. Delete anything you cannot fill. Empty brackets are how generic output is born.
- Role: You are [seniority + function].
- Job: Produce [deliverable] for [audience] so they can [decision].
- Context: [paste notes]. If a fact is missing, say so.
- Constraints: [length], [format], [ban list].
- Example of good: [one snippet]. Example of bad: [one snippet].
- Check: Reject the draft if [test].