Prompt 1 — The Explainer
When to use it: You have encountered a concept you do not fully understand and want it explained properly… not just a Wikipedia summary.
“Explain [concept] to me like I already understand the basics but have never gone deep on it. Start with why it matters before you explain how it works. Use a real example, not a toy one.”
What makes this work: the phrase “why it matters before how it works” completely changes the shape of the response. You get context before mechanics… which is how humans actually learn things.
Prompt 2 — The Code Reviewer
When to use it: You have written code and want honest feedback before anyone else sees it.
“Review this code as a senior developer who cares about maintainability above everything else. Do not just tell me what works. Tell me what will cause problems in six months, what a new developer would find confusing, and what you would rewrite if it were yours.”
The key phrase is “if it were yours”… it shifts Claude from polite feedback to real feedback. The difference is significant.
Prompt 3 — The First Draft Starter
When to use it: You are staring at a blank page and cannot make yourself start writing.
“I need to write [type of piece] about [topic]. My audience is [describe them]. I want the tone to feel [describe tone]. Write me three different opening paragraphs… each with a different approach. I will pick one and take it from there.”
Three options prevents the paralysis of the blank page. You are not choosing whether to start… you are choosing which start you like best.
Completely different feeling.
Prompt 4 — The Devil’s Advocate
When to use it: You have made a decision and want to pressure test it before committing.
“I have decided to [your decision]. I am fairly confident it is right. Now argue against it as strongly as you can. Do not soften it. Find every real weakness, assumption I might be making, and thing I might have missed.”
Most people use Claude to confirm their thinking. This prompt does the opposite… it challenges your thinking.
The decisions I have run through this have come out either stronger or completely changed. Both outcomes are good.
Prompt 5 — The Email Fixer
When to use it: You have drafted a message and it is not quite landing the way you want.
“Here is an email I have written: [paste email]. The problem is it feels [too formal / too aggressive / too vague / too long]. Keep my meaning exactly. Keep my voice. Just fix the feeling.”
“Keep my voice” is the phrase that matters most here… without it, Claude rewrites the email in its own voice and you lose the personal quality that makes it yours.
Prompt 6 — The Learning Accelerator
When to use it: You are starting to learn something new and want a proper roadmap instead of random YouTube videos.
“I want to learn [skill or topic]. I currently know [your starting point]. I have [time available] per day. Give me a week-by-week learning plan with specific things to do each week… not just topics to read about. Actual tasks.”
“Actual tasks” is the phrase that transforms this from a syllabus into a plan.
The difference between “learn about REST APIs” and “build a working REST API with three endpoints” is everything.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment