The guide is taken from a prompting guideline I found on: Claude.ai I re-organized and formatted to make it easier to use for me and my team.

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— By Monica (follow me for more tips on project management and event production)

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General tips for effective prompting

1. Be clear and specific

Clearly state your task or question at the beginning of your message. Provide context and details to help Claude understand your needs. Break complex tasks into smaller, manageable steps.

Bad Prompt	Good Prompt	Why It Works
Help me with a presentation.	I need help creating a 10-slide presentation for our quarterly sales meeting. The presentation should cover our Q2 sales performance, top-selling products, and sales targets for Q3. Please provide an outline with key points for each slide.	Specific details about the task:

number of slides,
purpose of the presentation
key topics to be covered. |

2. Use examples

Provide examples of the kind of output you're looking for. If you want a specific format or style, show Claude an example.

Bad Prompt	Good Prompt	Why It Works
Write a professional email.	*I need to write a professional email to a client about a project delay. Here's a similar email I've sent before:

'Dear [Client], I hope this email finds you well. I wanted to update you on the progress of [Project Name]. Unfortunately, we've encountered an unexpected issue that will delay our completion date by approximately two weeks. We're working diligently to resolve this and will keep you updated on our progress. Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns. Best regards, [Your Name]'

Help me draft a new email following a similar tone and structure, but for our current situation where we're delayed by a month due to supply chain issues.* | Concrete example of the desired style and tone, clear reference point for the new email. |

3. Encourage thinking

For complex tasks, ask Claude to "think step-by-step" or "explain your reasoning. This can lead to more accurate and detailed responses.

Bad Prompt	Good Prompt	Why It Works
How can I improve team productivity?	*I'm looking to improve my team's productivity. Think through this step-by-step, considering the following factors:

Current productivity blockers (e.g., too many meetings, unclear priorities)
Potential solutions (e.g., time management techniques, project management tools)
Implementation challenges
Methods to measure improvement

For each step, please provide a brief explanation of your reasoning. Then summarize your ideas at the end.* | Think through the problem systematically, providing a guided structure for the response and asking for explanations of the reasoning process. It also prompts the AI to create a summary at the end for easier reading. |