Basic Principles & Tips

When conversing with ChatGPT or designing prompts, keep these principles and tips in mind. Remembering them will help you write better prompts 😁

Principle 1: Use the Newest Model

If using a product directly like ChatGPT or Midjourney, you don't need to worry about this. But if using APIs or the OpenAI Playground, test with the newest model first.

Principle 2: Include Complete Information in Prompts

This has the biggest impact on results. For example, if you want AI to write a poem about OpenAI:

Less effective prompt:

Write a poem about OpenAI.

The response may be too generic. Better to add more details:

Better prompt:

Write a short inspiring poem about OpenAI, focusing on the recent DALL-E product launch (DALL-E is a text to image ML model) in the style of a {famous poet}

Principle 3: Prompts Should Be Clear and Unambiguous

Like with humans, short simple sentences are easiest to understand. Also avoid ambiguous phrasing.

For example, "not too much more" is unclear:

The description for this product should be fairly short, a few sentences only, and not too much more.

Better to be specific on sentence count:

Use a 3 to 5 sentence paragraph to describe this product.

Note simplicity doesn't mean brevity. Prompts can be long if needed to fully describe the task, even if a bit redundant.

Principle 4: Use Proper Grammar, Spelling, and Punctuation

Especially important for English prompts.

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Examples to be added

Principle 5: Start Simple and Be Patient

As I showed with the math example, if the AI seems confused, consider adding clarity rather than discarding it. Experiment a few times and be patient.