Techniques & Methods
Prompt Engineering
The skill of writing clear, structured instructions that get the best results from AI.
Also known as: prompting
Prompt engineering is the skill of writing clear, structured instructions that get the best results from AI tools. A bad prompt ("write me a blog post") gets a generic response. A good prompt (role + task + context + format + examples + constraints) gets something usable. The six elements every prompt should have: explicit role, specific task, relevant context, exact output format, examples where useful, and constraints on what to avoid. Conventions differ across models — ChatGPT prefers plain English headings, Claude responds best to XML tags, Midjourney wants comma-separated descriptors. In 2026, prompt engineering as a standalone job is rarer, but prompt skills are expected across many AI-adjacent roles.
