A prompt that works the first time

When Claude gives you something generic and useless, it is usually not its fault. It does not know who you are, what you need it for or what the result should look like. A person would ask. Claude mostly just guesses.

Four things to tell it

1. Context. Who you are and what situation you are in. “I’m a second-year high school student” changes the answer more than you would expect.
2. Task. What exactly you want. Not a topic, but an outcome.
3. Format. How long it should be, bullet points or prose, with a table or without.
4. Constraints. What you do not want. For example, no terms you have not learned yet.

Example

Write me something about photosynthesis.

I'm a second-year high school student and I have a biology test
on photosynthesis on Friday. Explain the difference between the
light-dependent and light-independent reactions so that I can
say it in my own words.

Keep it to two short paragraphs and add three questions that
could be on the test at the end. Put the answers below them.

The second prompt is a few sentences longer, but it saves you three rounds of “no, that’s not what I meant”.

Two extra tricks

Let it ask. End your prompt with: “If anything is missing, ask me first.” Claude will then ask instead of guessing.

Show an example. If you want a specific style, paste a sample. One example says more than a paragraph of description.

You don’t need a perfect prompt on the first try. When an answer is off, say exactly what is wrong. Claude corrects itself better when it knows what to change.