A good prompt reads like a good brief
Avi from Instinct Builder ·
When a prompt works, it usually does so for a boring reason: it says clearly what you want. Reading prompts that worked is a fast way to learn that skill.
What the guides say
Anthropic's prompting guide says its models respond well to clear, explicit instructions, and suggests thinking of the model as a capable new employee who lacks context on your norms and workflows. It also gives a test: show your prompt to a colleague with minimal context and ask them to follow it. If they would be confused, the model will be too.1
The same guide calls examples one of the most reliable ways to steer format, tone and structure, and says to make them relevant, diverse and structured.1
Why copying helps
A prompt from a real request already contains the context a stranger would need: the goal, the limits, what a good result looks like. When you copy one and change the details, you see how those parts fit together. After a few, you start writing your own that way.
Try it: pick one prompt from the directory, copy it, then rewrite it for your own case before you send it.
This post describes general guidance from the source below. Whether it improves results for your own Instinct is not tested.
Source: Anthropic, Prompting best practices.