“Help Me Help You.” How to Get AI Chatbots To Prompt Themselves.

Using LLMs and chatbots to improve your prompting on the fly.

Jan 11, 2024

Happy Thursday, cyber-sloths!

One of my resolutions this year is to help connect more dots for my readers.

I want to move from “Look, a cool AI tool!” to “Here’s a practical way to actually use it in your own life!”

To that end, I’ll kick things off by sharing two ways you can get better results out of an AI chatbot by…asking the chatbot itself.1

A wide image depicting a character resembling Keanu Reeves sitting at a table with a laptop. The character is looking at the laptop screen with an expression of awe and surprise. He says the icon "Whoa!" in a speech bubble

“Can’t I just use a copy-paste prompt?”

You could…but my aversion to this approach is well-documented:

Bye, Splatterprompting. We Hardly Knew You.

Daniel Nest

January 20, 2023

Read full story

And:

Learn Prompting, Not Prompts

Daniel Nest

April 13, 2023

Read full story

Now, simple templates for generic tasks—especially in the context of a broader workflow—can be quite useful. (See this post by

Alejandro Piad Morffis

)

Also, if you’ve worked out your own prompt that’s tailored to your needs, you should 100% reuse it instead of reinventing the wheel every time. (You might even want to bake the prompt into a custom GPT or add it to your Custom Instructions.)

However, I’m a proponent of learning the ropes while working with AI instead of grabbing somebody else’s off-the-shelf, cookie-cutter prompt that may or may not fit my situation.

With that mini-rant over, let’s look at the two methods and real-life examples.

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1. The “Ask me questions” method

Here’s a story I often hear:

Someone learns about ChatGPT, signs up for an account, asks a basic question, and receives a bland, mediocre response.

Sound familiar?

At this point, the person either:

Decides that ChatGPT is a crappy, overhyped toy and gives up on it.
Decides that ChatGPT is a lot more complex than they thought and starts hunting for specialized copy-paste prompts and hacks (see above).

I get it.

To many of us, explaining exactly what we need doesn’t come naturally. Hell, we might not even know exactly what we need or have a good overview of every relevant aspect to consider.

But you know who does?

ChatGPT.

It’s a magical genie that sucked up a huge chunk of all written knowledge, so it’ll often know more than you about what’s important in any given context.

A wide cartoon image featuring a powerful yet friendly genie. The genie is depicted in a dynamic pose, absorbing knowledge from various sources such as books, a laptop, and other educational materials. The genie is saying, "I know kung fu...and how to bake cookies...and..." The scene is colorful and whimsical, capturing the genie's excitement and enthusiasm for learning. The background is a magical, ethereal library setting with floating books and glowing orbs of knowledge.

Here’s how you can tap into that: After writing your initial request, just append this short line—or something similar—at the end:

“Before you respond, please ask me any clarifying questions you need to make your reply more complete and relevant. Be as thorough as needed.”

Let’s look at a real example.

Say you’d like ChatGPT to recommend a few fun activities for kids. You might do something like this:

Give me 10 ideas for fun indoor activities to do with my two kids, aged 6 and 8. ChatGPT Certainly! Here are ten fun indoor activities you can enjoy with your two kids, aged 6 and 8: DIY Craft Projects: Engage in some creative arts and crafts. You could make homemade greeting cards, create fun bookmarks, or even try your hand at simple origami. Baking Session: Whip up some simple recipes in the kitchen. Baking cookies or cupcakes can be a fun and delicious activity. Plus, it's a great way to teach them some basic cooking skills. — See **the full chat**.

There’s nothing wrong with those suggestions. They’re just kind of…meh?

Now watch what happens with our little addition:

Give me 10 ideas for fun indoor activities to do with my two kids, aged 6 and 8. Before you respond, please ask me any clarifying questions you need to make your reply more complete and relevant. Be as thorough as needed. ChatGPT Certainly! I'd be happy to suggest some fun indoor activities for your kids. To make these suggestions more tailored and enjoyable, could you please provide me with a bit more information? Interests: What are your children's interests or hobbies? Do they enjoy arts and crafts, science, storytelling, or physical activities? Space and Equipment: How much space do you have available for indoor activities? Do you have access to any specific equipment or materials, like art supplies, a computer, or a gaming console? Duration and Involvement: Are you looking for activities that can be completed quickly, or are you open to longer projects? Also, would you prefer activities where you can be actively involved, or ones where the kids can be more independent? Educational or Recreational: Are you leaning more towards educational activities, purely fun activities, or a mix of both? Any Special Considerations: Are there any special needs or considerations to keep in mind for your children, like allergies, physical limitations, or learning preferences? — See **the full chat**.

That’s a whole lot of relevant stuff I didn’t even think to share with ChatGPT on my own. Let’s see what happens when I give it more context:

1. The younger one (girl) likes being creative and arts/crafts projects. The older boy enjoys LEGO and puzzles. 2. We have enough space to get a bit active. We have lots of arts and crafts stuff, coloring pencils and markers, and board games. 3. I want activities that take around 30 minutes and where I'm an active participant. 4. The goal is to have fun and spend quality time together, but if there's learning involved, all the better. 5. The boy tends to prefer activities with clear directions/goals or instructions. The girl tends to get quickly bored of longer board games. ChatGPT Thank you for the detailed information! Based on your children's interests and your family's needs, here are 10 fun indoor activity ideas: Miniature LEGO Challenges: Create a series of quick, themed LEGO challenges for your son. For example, who can build the tallest tower, the strongest bridge, or the funniest animal in 10 minutes? Your daughter can join in with her own creative twists. Crafting Personal Storybooks: Engage your daughter's love for arts and crafts by creating personal storybooks. Each family member can draw and write their own short story, then share it with others. Puzzle Race: Have a puzzle race with your son. Divide a puzzle into sections and see who can complete their part faster. This can be a fun and engaging activity that satisfies his love for puzzles and clear goals. — See **the full chat**.

These suggestions are more nuanced and, most importantly, tailored to my situation.

The beauty of this approach is that it’s universally applicable. It works regardless of the nature of your request or how good your initial prompt is. ChatGPT will customize its follow-up questions depending on the given scenario and help you uncover any overlooked angles.

Watch ChatGPT seamlessly adjust to a request for LinkedIn ads…

…coding help…

I want to learn coding. What are the 5 best places to start? Before you respond, please ask me any clarifying questions you need to make your reply more complete and relevant. Be as thorough as needed. ChatGPT Great! I'd be happy to help you find the best places to start learning coding. To give you the most relevant suggestions, I have a few clarifying questions: What is your current experience level with coding, if any? Are you looking to learn a specific programming language or technology (e.g., Python, web development, data science)? What is your preferred learning style? For example, do you prefer structured courses, self-paced learning, or hands-on projects? Do you have any specific goals or projects in mind that you want to achieve through learning coding? Are you looking for free resources, or are you willing to invest in paid courses or programs?

…or inspirational quotes:

This is a versatile, “Swiss Army Knife” approach that educates you in the process and helps you uncover any blind spots.

Now let me show you another method that might be better suited for more ambitious requests.

2. The “Learn and prompt” method

Given my skeptical stance on off-the-shelf prompts, you might think I’m against learning any advanced prompting techniques, period.

I’m not.

One can get better at prompting.

There are proven ways to craft extensive, hyper-specific prompts to turn ChatGPT into an effective school tutor, marketing specialist, or just about anything else (see this article by

Ethan Mollick

)

Not so long ago, OpenAI even released this prompt engineering manual full of empirically tested strategies for working with large language models.

But…there’s, like, a lot of, uh, text ‘n stuff.

Who has the time to read and understand it all?

ChatGPT does.

A wide cartoon image featuring the original powerful yet friendly genie, now in a dynamic kung fu pose while reading a book. The genie is enthusiastically saying, "I read while doing kung fu!" The background is the same magical, ethereal library setting with floating books and glowing orbs of knowledge. The genie's expression is one of focus and joy, combining physical activity with intellectual pursuit in a whimsical and colorful scene.

Here’s a three-step process for making ChatGPT do the heavy lifting for you.

Step 1: Share the learning material with ChatGPT

Simply copy-paste2 the text into a new chat and ask ChatGPT to study it:

Please study this Prompt Engineering guide from OpenAI: Here's the content of the page: Prompt engineering This guide shares strategies and tactics for getting better results from large language models (sometimes referred to as GPT models) like GPT-4. The methods described here can sometimes be deployed in combination for greater effect. We encourage experimentation to find the methods that work best for you. Some of the examples demonstrated here currently work only with our most capable model, gpt-4. In general, if you find that a model fails at a task and a more capable model is available, it's often worth trying again with the more capable model.

ChatGPT will review it and provide a helpful summary:

Thank you for sharing the Prompt Engineering guide from OpenAI. This guide provides valuable insights and techniques for optimizing interactions with large language models like GPT-4. The guide covers a range of strategies and tactics to enhance the quality of responses from the model, ensuring they are more aligned with users' expectations and needs. Here are some key points: Clear Instructions: The importance of giving clear, detailed instructions to get more relevant answers. Using delimiters for distinct parts, specifying steps for complex tasks, and providing example prompts can improve clarity. Reference Texts: Suggests including reference texts in queries to help the model answer with fewer fabrications and to use citations effectively. Breaking Down Complex Tasks: Advises on splitting complex tasks into simpler subtasks, using intent classification, and summarizing long documents piecewise.

Now you’re ready for the next step.

Step 2: Ask for a prompt

You can now ask ChatGPT to craft a better prompt for your request.

In the same chat, write something along these lines:

“I want to [YOUR REQUEST]. Based on the learnings from the above guide, please craft a detailed, exhaustive prompt for me to use.”

Let’s stick to our “indoor activities for kids” example:

I want to get 10 ideas for fun indoor activities to do with my two kids, aged 6 and 8. Based on the learnings from the above guide, please craft a detailed, exhaustive prompt for me to use, including adopting a persona, etc. 2 / 2 ChatGPT Based on the guidelines from the prompt engineering guide, here's a detailed and exhaustive prompt for generating ideas for indoor activities: "Assume you are an experienced child educator specializing in fun and educational activities for young children. Your task is to list 10 engaging and creative indoor activities that are suitable for two kids aged 6 and 8. These activities should be designed to be fun, promote learning, and encourage physical activity. They should be feasible with common household items, not require extensive preparation, and be safe for children to do under minimal supervision. Please provide clear instructions for each activity, highlighting its educational value and how it can be adapted to suit both a 6-year-old and an 8-year-old. Include activities that involve arts and crafts, simple science experiments, imaginative storytelling, and interactive games. Ensure that each activity fosters collaboration and teamwork between the siblings. Your response should be detailed, well-structured, and easy for a parent to follow."

Great, ChatGPT just gave me a much more nuanced prompt than my original one-liner.

Time to test it!

Step 3: Use your new prompt

I recommend starting a new chat to prevent ChatGPT from getting confused about its intended role. In that new chat, paste in the prompt from Step 2:

"Assume you are an experienced child educator specializing in fun and educational activities for young children. Your task is to list 10 engaging and creative indoor activities that are suitable for two kids aged 6 and 8. These activities should be designed to be fun, promote learning, and encourage physical activity. They should be feasible with common household items, not require extensive preparation, and be safe for children to do under minimal supervision. Please provide clear instructions for each activity, highlighting its educational value and how it can be adapted to suit both a 6-year-old and an 8-year-old. Include activities that involve arts and crafts, simple science experiments, imaginative storytelling, and interactive games. Ensure that each activity fosters collaboration and teamwork between the siblings. Your response should be detailed, well-structured, and easy for a parent to follow." ChatGPT As an experienced child educator, I'm delighted to share 10 engaging and educational indoor activities for kids aged 6 and 8. These activities are designed to be fun, promote learning, encourage physical activity, and can be easily done with common household items. Each activity will have clear instructions, highlight its educational value, and include adaptations for different ages. They will also foster collaboration and teamwork between the siblings. 1. DIY Storybook Creation Instructions: Provide the kids with paper, colors, and writing materials. Encourage them to create a storybook, with the 8-year-old writing the story and the 6-year-old illustrating it. Educational Value: Enhances creativity, storytelling skills, and artistic expression. Develops writing and reading skills in the older child and drawing skills in the younger. — See **the full chat**.

These answers are more structured and go beyond a simple list of ideas.

This approach also works for any task, with any relevant learning material.

Have you e.g. found a detailed guide to turning ChatGPT into a rocket scientist? Just share the guide with ChatGPT and let it prompt itself!

Combining the two methods

You might have noticed that our second method results in a better structure but the suggestions themselves are still quite generic.

Can you guess how we might be able to fix that?

Oh, you’ve read the heading of this section and know exactly how we’ll fix it?!

Good for you, Eagle Eye!

Yes, you can get the best of both worlds by first extracting a detailed prompt from ChatGPT (Method #2) and then appending our one-liner from Method #1.

Here’s our children’s activities example one last time.

The prompt:

The questions and answers:

Certainly! I'd be happy to provide a list of 10 creative and educational indoor activities for children aged 6 and 8. Before I do, I have a few clarifying questions: Are there any specific educational areas (like math, science, language arts) you'd like these activities to focus on? Do the children have any specific interests or hobbies that could be incorporated into these activities? Are there any materials or resources you'd prefer to avoid using? Do the children have any special needs or learning preferences that should be taken into account? Your answers to these questions will help me tailor the activities to better suit the children's needs and interests. User 1. I'd like to focus on math 2. The younger (girl) likes to be creative and do arts/crafts while the older one likes puzzles and instruction-based activities. 3. Anything that's hard to source in a regular store 4. They like to have examples to follow (like a drawing process they can copy)

The results:

1. Math Art: Geometric Collage Materials: Colored paper, scissors, glue. Instructions: Have the children cut geometric shapes from colored paper and arrange them to create a collage. For the 6-year-old, focus on simple shapes like triangles and squares. The 8-year-old can try more complex shapes like hexagons or octagons. Educational Value: This activity teaches geometry and spatial awareness. It also allows for creativity and artistic expression. 2. Puzzle Race: Math Edition Materials: Puzzles (can be homemade), timer. Instructions: Create simple math puzzles (e.g., basic addition and subtraction). The children solve them and then find a puzzle piece corresponding to the answer. The one who completes their puzzle first wins. Educational Value: Encourages fast math thinking and puzzle-solving skills. — See **the full chat**.

As you can see, this fusion benefits from the more extensive prompt while accounting for our specific situation at the same time.

Go ahead and test these out!

Over to you…

I hope you found this helpful.

If you get good results with these approaches, feel free to share them!

Do you know of any other AI tips that are easy to implement?

Leave a comment or shoot me an email at whytryai@substack.com.

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I’ll be using ChatGPT as my reference for this post, but everything here should apply to any other AI chatbot or large language model.

If you have ChatGPT Plus or use a browser-enabled chatbot like Microsoft Copilot, you can try simply pasting the URL to your learning material. In my experience, however, it doesn’t always work flawlessly. ChatGPT in particular may refuse or fail to access certain sites.