OpenAI recently released its official ChatGPT Prompting Guide. This guide, titled “GPT best practices”, outlines six strategies to enhance the performance of AI language models and ChatGPT. Moreover, these strategies aim to improve the quality and relevance of the AI-generated content by guiding the conversation in a more specific and coherent direction. In this article, we will explore the six strategies outlined in the ChatGPT Prompting Guide and discuss how they can be applied to optimize interactions with the AI model.
Table of contents
Overview of 6 GPT Best Practices
1. Write Clear Instructions
AI cannot read minds, so make sure to provide clear instructions and examples to get desired outputs. To improve responses, demonstrate preferred formats and detail exactly what you want rather than making the model guess.
By explicitly mentioning the format, such as asking for a list, a definition, or a step-by-step guide, users can guide the AI model to generate a more structured and organized response. This strategy helps clarify expectations and ensures that the AI-generated content aligns with the intended purpose.
2. Provide Reference Text
Citing reference materials can help LLMs answer questions without hallucination, as that is still an ongoing issue with today’s LLMs. This strategy involves using a reference text as a guide for the model’s output. This can be particularly useful when you want the model to generate text that is similar to a specific piece of work or in a specific style.
3. Split Complex Tasks into Simpler, Smaller Tasks
Workflows of simpler tasks that are linked together are better than one long, complex task. If you have a complex task that you want the model to perform, then it can be helpful to break it down into smaller, simpler tasks. Use outputs from earlier steps as inputs for later steps to improve accuracy. This can make it easier for the model to understand what you want it to do and can also make the output more manageable.
4. Give it Time to “Think”
When asked complex questions, models should show their step-by-step reasoning before concluding. This strategy involves giving the model some time to process its instructions before it generates a response. This can be particularly useful when you want the model to generate a thoughtful and well-reasoned response. By giving the model time to “think”, you can help it generate a more thoughtful and well-reasoned response.
But the student’s solution is actually not correct! We can get the model to successfully notice this by prompting the model to generate its own solution first.
5. Use External Tools
OpenAI recommends compensating for the weaknesses of GPTs by feeding them the outputs of other tools. Examples include using a text retrieval system to help GPT-4 learn about documents or a code execution engine to help it do math and code.
6. Test Changes Systematically
To see if changes consistently improve performance overall, OpenAI recommends you make a full test suite with “gold-standard” (your perfect answers) reference answers.
This strategy involves testing different modifications to your prompts and observing how they affect the model’s output. By doing this systematically, you can identify which modifications lead to the best results and adjust your prompts accordingly.
| Also Read: Turn ChatGPT Into A Midjourney Prompt Generator: A Step-By-Step Guide
Conclusion
The official ChatGPT Prompting Guide by OpenAI provides users with valuable strategies to effectively prompt the AI model and obtain desired responses. By utilizing all six GPT Best Practices, users can optimize their interactions with the AI model and generate content that meets their specific needs. These strategies empower users to have more control and influence over the AI-generated content, enhancing the overall user experience with ChatGPT.
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