Say what you actually want

Vague in, vague out. Specific in, useful out.

A model can't read your mind. The more of the picture you give it, the better the answer. A good prompt usually covers four things:

• The task: what you want done.
• The audience: who it's for.
• The format: bullets, a table, 100 words, a code block.
• The constraints: tone, length, things to avoid.

Vague:
  Write about volcanoes.

Specific:
  Explain how volcanoes erupt to a 10-year-old.
  Use a baking-soda-volcano comparison, keep it under 120 words,
  and end with one fun fact.

Same topic, wildly different results.

Quick check

Which prompt is most likely to get a useful answer?

1. Help with my email
2. Rewrite this email to my landlord so it is polite but firm, under 100 words
3. Email stuff please
4. Write something good

Answer: Rewrite this email to my landlord so it is polite but firm, under 100 words. It names the task, the audience, the tone and the length. The others leave the model guessing.