I've never touched prompt writing before, how can I get started? What approaches are most effective for the first steps? For example, does asking 'open-ended questions' make sense or is 'role assignment' more likely to yield better results? Any feedback or experiences from you guys?
Where should I start learning prompt engineering?
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When writing a prompt, you can compare it to programming a GPS device: the first step isn’t setting the route, but learning how to get there. Both "open-ended questions" and "role assignment" are important, but at the start, "trying simple directives" is more realistic—like "summarize this text." It’s similar to experimenting with basic buttons on a new gaming console.
Prompt engineering is actually a pretty enjoyable field, and for beginners, the best approach is to put it into practice. When I first started, I spent so much time thinking, "How can I phrase the same question differently?" until I realized that starting with the simplest version is the best way to go. For example, the "open-ended question" approach is truly gold—saying something like, "Can you analyze the causes of World War II?" instead of "List three key factors that led to World War II" makes a huge difference in the quality of responses. When it comes to "role assignment," approaches like "You are a history professor; provide an explanatory answer" work really well, especially for complex topics, as they help adjust the AI's tone.
From my own experience: My first attempt was just saying, "Write a Python code," and the responses I got were either too simple or overly detailed. Then I tried, "You are a senior Python developer; create a file management script for me and explain each step," and the result was both high-quality and educational. So, both methods matter, but it depends on the goal—if you want straightforward information, open questions work best, but for in-depth answers, role assignment is key. If you're talking about feedback, I used to rely on people at first, but later I started identifying "logical inconsistencies" in the AI's responses myself. Now, I look at it like, "This part of the answer is inconsistent; the correct version should be this."