AI tools have the potential to accelerate the development of everything around you and save a lot of money at the same time. If you want to use them effectively, learn to give them the right commands. The better you master the science of “prompts,” as the language used to communicate with AI is called, the better results you’ll achieve. A prompt is an AI command that can contain text, data, or images.

Thanks to the pool of knowledge that AI has to offer, it is possible to delegate a number of more or less challenging tasks to it. Processes that used to take days and weeks can be reduced to minutes and hours. However, it is necessary to learn how to communicate with AI.

Learn to delegate precisely

The art of delegation needs to be learned. In one training session organized by my coach, who is the president of the coaches association, the best that one can get in the field, we learned the art of delegation through play. To understand what goes on in the minds of colleagues to whom we delegate work, we assigned ourselves the roles of the task setter and the task implementer. The task setter was responsible for using instructions to guide the task implementer to draw a picture that only the task setter could see. The task setter could only guide the task implementer by specifying the direction of movement of the implementer’s hand, while the setter could not see the progress of the drawing. Whichever pair (task setter and implementer) drew the more accurate image won. The point of the game was to understand and internalize the precision of task assignment, which ensures smooth collaboration between task setters and task implementers.

AI works in a very similar way. The more explicit the assignment you present to the AI, the better the result you get. Conversely, the more vague the query you submit, the more general the result you get.

Proceed iteratively

Don’t be afraid to experiment when creating prompts. The strength of new tools like ChatGPT is conversation memory. With this memory, you can build on a previous conversation in a discussion, and each subsequent response will take into account the previous conversation.

Maximizing the Effectiveness of Your AI Interactions: Crafting Optimal Prompts

In the first sentence, clearly state the request Say exactly what you want: “Summarize the text below”, “Translate the article”, “Suggest a course of action”, … and be as specific as possible.

What can you ask of AI (ChatGPT)?

• Summarize (ask the AI to summarize important points from a large text)
• Inferring from text (have the AI analyze large texts and infer sentiment, keywords or trends)
• Transformation (have the text translated into another language, check for typos, grammar, or ask to edit the text into different formats or tone of language)
• Text creation (have the tool create completely new texts based on your request, e.g. draft emails, individual offers, etc.)
• Chatbot (just chat about any topic you are interested in)

You don’t have to limit yourself to one sentence when making a query, feel free to break up the query if you need to.

Are you stuck and lacking in inventiveness? Ask for help 

Simply let the AI know that you need help formulating your query and ask for assistance. Then select the desired suggestion from the options offered.

Add Context

For optimal results, provide the context in which you are formulating your request. The context includes all the facts and circumstances under which the request was made. If you want the AI to help you prepare a business plan, include all relevant information about the intended purpose of your business. However, avoid overloading the AI with information that is not pertinent to the task.

Specify the Style of Output

State the tone in which you want the output to be produced. Should it be more friendly or professional? Also, be aware that the language model has been trained by someone and may have inherited biases. If you want a balanced output, specifically ask for it.

Specify the Formal Characteristics of the Output

Unless you specify otherwise, the output is likely to be text. However, you might want tables or formatted data (JSON, CSV, etc.) from the AI.

You can gain valuable output if you ask the AI for a number of responses (e.g. 10 alternatives) and have it rank the responses according to a selected criterion (e.g. quality, relevance, importance to your business, etc.).

Organize complex problems into a mind map. If you are interested, inquire about the source of the data on which the AI based its answers.

Not Satisfied with the Result?

Don’t hesitate to start over and improve.

Want to Move Towards Perfection?

Experiment. Create and refine prompts to achieve better results. Don’t settle with the first output. Use the first output as an input for further exploration and further optimization of the problem you are currently solving. Enhance the improvement of the next answer with examples, or discuss with the AI the pros and cons of the proposed solution.

Guide the results improvement by filtering through the lens of your perception of the world, the market environment, the current situation of your customers, products, company, team, competitors, etc.

Remember, the AI knows nothing about your specific business. Don’t settle for the first answer. The use of AI in business analytics has the potential to significantly advance your company’s growth, so seize the opportunity.