These AI skills are the keys to unlocking your future success. If you’re uncertain about AI or concerned about its impact, staying in the shadows won’t lead you anywhere. AI is here to stay, and it’s reshaping our world.
While it’s true that AI will transform many jobs in the future, there’s no need to fear. Instead, view this as an opportunity to future-proof your career and harness the countless advantages AI has to offer. The time to get on-board and embrace AI is now.
What Is Prompt Engineering?
Prompt engineering is the art of creating precise and clear instructions to elicit desired responses from AI language models. This guide will walk you through the process, providing practical examples along the way.
Crafting Effective Instructions for AI Models
Step 1: Understand the Context
Before crafting a prompt, grasp the context and the specific task you want the AI to perform. For example, if you want to generate a summary of a news article, your context might be: “Summarize the following news article.”
Step 2: Be Precise and Specific
Use unambiguous language in your prompt. Avoid vague instructions that could lead to unpredictable results. For instance, if you want a short summary, specify: “Provide a concise summary of the article in three sentences.”
Step 3: Anticipate Possible Responses
Consider the range of responses the AI might generate. For example, in a sentiment analysis task, anticipate both positive and negative sentiments. Refine your prompt to cover all relevant scenarios.
Example: You may want to identify the emotions and purpose behind a particular text. This may help you craft a better response or understand a deeper feeling behind the communication.
Prompt: Describe the emotion and feeling in the written text: ‘ADD TEXT’
Response: “Future-Proof Your Career – Simple guide to Prompt Engineering for AI,” conveys a sense of optimism, forward-thinking, and confidence. It evokes the emotion of empowerment, suggesting that the reader has the ability to secure their future career in the ever-evolving field of AI…
Summary: Positive sentiment, enthusiasm, satisfaction.
Step 4: Test and Repeat
Begin with a basic prompt and evaluate the initial responses. If the response doesn’t align with your expectations, refine the prompt based on the feedback.
Step 5: Consider Contextual Cues
Include relevant context or keywords if needed. This guides the AI’s understanding and ensures a more accurate response.
Example: Describe the emotion and feeling in the written response above suitable for a 12-year-old to understand.
Response: The guide to prompt engineering with examples is like a friendly instruction manual for talking to a special kind of computer. Imagine it’s a guide to having a conversation with a clever robot! …
See how the written content has changed to a more friendly and open style.
Step 6: Balance Specificity and Flexibility
Strive for a prompt that’s specific enough to get the desired response but flexible enough to handle variations in language or input.
Step 7: Incorporate Logic and Creativity
Craft prompts that encourage critical thinking. For example, if you’re asking the AI to generate a creative story, prompt it with a starting scenario and let it build from there.
Example:
Write a futuristic, dream-world experience of a young traveller of distant planets describing their emotions and fears as they journey through exotic worlds.
Response: ...Moving on to the second planet, Solara, Alex was met with a landscape bathed in a perpetual twilight. Bioluminescent creatures danced in the air, casting ethereal glows that painted the skies. The ground was soft, as if walking on stardust, and a gentle breeze whispered secrets of forgotten constellations….
The AI response is cut from a longer response but shows the stunning ‘imagination’ of AI.
Step 8: Set the output style
You can set the response length by stating a limit or to expand a subjects response. You can also state the response style: Write the response in 600 words… as a numbered/bulleted list, in a chart with the following headings etc).
Prompt 1: Explain the main topics for understanding AI.
Response 1: Understanding AI involves grasping several key topics that together form the foundation of this field. Here are the main topics you should explore:
Introduction to AI:
Familiarize yourself with the basic concept of Artificial Intelligence. Understand that AI refers to machines or computer programs that can perform tasks that typically require human intelligence…
The response is a long list with descriptions which is too long to repeat here. Lets shorten and re-organise it:
Prompt 2: Re-write the response as a chart showing the top 4 most important areas with the following column headings: Title, Content.
Response 2:
| Title | Content |
| Introduction to AI | – Basic concept of Artificial Intelligence (AI) – Definition: Machines or computer programs performing tasks that typically require human intelligence |
| Machine Learning (ML) | – Subset of AI focusing on machines learning from data – Improvement over time without explicit programming – Concepts: algorithms, training data, models |
| Deep Learning | – Specialized ML with neural networks and multiple layers – Learns intricate patterns in data – Effective in tasks like image recognition and natural language processing |
| Natural Language Processing (NLP) | – Enables machines to understand, interpret, and generate human language – Applications: chatbots, language translation, sentiment analysis |
Step 9: Avoid Biased or Leading Language
Use neutral and objective language to prevent introducing bias or leading the AI towards a specific response.
Or
Describe the language you want the AI to use in the response.
Example. This is the sample text: ‘Dear Mr Clever, I need you to visit me as soon as possible regarding your next Clever Video on Prompt Engineering’.
Prompt 1: Respond to the text in a friendly and eager-to-help tone. ‘(Paste Text’).
Response 1: …I’m thrilled to hear from you! I’d be more than happy to visit and discuss the upcoming Clever Video on Prompt Engineering. Your interest in this topic is fantastic, and I’m eager to help in any way I can….
Prompt 2: Respond to the text in a respectfully positive but unwilling tone. ‘(Paste Text’).
Response 2: … At the moment, due to prior commitments, I’m unable to arrange a visit. However, I’d be more than happy to offer assistance through email or video conferencing. Please feel free to share your questions or ideas, and I’ll do my best to provide guidance and support.
Note that the examples shown are sections from the full AI response.
Step 10: Repeat and Refine Based on Responses
Continuously evaluate responses and refine prompts. This process improves prompt effectiveness over time.
Conclusion:
Prompt engineering is a dynamic skill that improves with practice. By following these steps and considering the examples provided, you’ll be well-equipped to create prompts that yield the desired outcomes from AI models.
