Prompting Techniques

There are different ways to prompt depending on what you need.

Like a good conversation, a prompt isn’t just a command.

When you talk to another person, you give them context. You explain what you want. You might even give examples. That’s what good prompting is like.

Let’s break down a few core techniques that help AI understand you more clearly:

Zero-Shot Prompting

This is like walking up to someone and saying:

“Do a presentation about AI.”

No context, no audience, no tone. It might work. You might get a presentation, but, chances are high it won’t be what you want.

This is how many people use AI today.

They open ChatGPT and type in a generic command, hoping for the best.

To get better results, you need to give the AI more context. One way to do that is to provide an example.

One-Shot Prompting

Now imagine saying:

“Here’s an example of a presenation about AI that I really like. Create one for me with a similar style and tone.”

Now, the chances of getting the presentation you’re hoping for are much higher.

And, the more context you provide, the chances get better and better.

Few-Shot Prompting

With a few examples, the AI sees a clearer pattern.

Imagine giving the AI 2 - 3 examples of the kind of presentation you want. Then ask it to create one.

There’s a good shot you’ll get something really close to what you want.

These are only the start of what you can do with the right techniques.

If you want to learn more, check out the Prompting Techniques course.

Outside of techniques, there are also parameters. These are like settings that can help you get better results.