A “prompt” is the input that guides a generative AI model to generate useful outputs. Generative AI tools like ChatGPT, GPT, DALL·E 2, Stable Diffusion, Midjourney, etc. all require prompting as their input.

In a natural language processing (NLP) context, “prompt engineering” is the process of discovering inputs that yield desirable or useful results. As is the story with any processes, better inputs yield better outputs; or commonly said another way “garbage in, garbage out.”

![Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NQWJjgi-_k

Designing effective and efficient prompts will increase the likelihood of receiving a response that is both favorable and contextual. With a good prompt, you can spend less time editing content and more time generating it.

As companies like PromptBase arise around the idea that the prompt is the “secret sauce” to using generative AI, prompt engineering could easily become the “career of the future.” But, any generative AI user can become an “advanced” prompt engineer. Here’s how

Spend time with the tools

• The more time you spend asking ChatGPT questions and receiving responses, the better your idea will be of various prompting approaches and their individual strengths and weaknesses
• Use Open AI’s GPT playground to perform interactive trial and error with variations in your prompt, model, temperature and top_p values (uniqueness of answer, i.e. creativity), and more available within the UI itself.

Become a prompt researcher instead of engineer

• If you’re already a subject matter expert in something, consider figuring out how to apply your personal skills to generating the best prompts in your field
• For example, if you’re an expert in SEO, what questions do you ask yourself when creating SEO strategies? How can you translate this knowledge into better prompts to generate the same level of output with AI?

Become a prompt researcher instead of engineer

• The term prompt engineer glosses over the idea that prompt formulation takes hypothesizing, research, result measurement, and repetition. Instead, approach prompting like a research project.
• Try as many different variations and formulations of your prompt as possible. One problem can have hundreds of solutions and one solution can have hundreds of approaches. The same can be said of prompting.