Careeroza
Common Mistakes
Mistakes and Fixes
| Mistake | Fix |
|---|---|
| Vague task ("make it better") | Say what "better" means: shorter, friendlier, fix grammar |
| No context | Add who the audience is and the facts the model needs |
| Saying only what NOT to do | Say what TO do instead ("write plain sentences" rather than "don't use markdown") |
| No output format | Describe and show the exact format |
| Asking about facts it cannot know | Put the facts (policy, order data) in the prompt |
| Huge prompt with everything | Include only relevant information; it saves tokens and improves focus |
| Testing on one example | Test on 20+ real inputs, including messy ones |
A Tiny Prompt Linter
Example
Teams sometimes add simple automatic checks to catch weak prompts before they ship:
import re
def lint(prompt):
issues = []
if len(prompt.split()) < 8:
issues.append("very short: add context and details")
if re.search(r"\b(better|nice|good|some stuff|etc)\b", prompt, re.I):
issues.append("vague words: say exactly what you want")
if not re.search(r"\b(format|json|bullet|words|sentences|list|table)\b", prompt, re.I):
issues.append("no output format")
if prompt.lower().count("don't") + prompt.lower().count("do not") >= 2:
issues.append("many negatives: say what to do instead")
return issues or ["looks OK"]
for pr in ["Make this description better.",
"Rewrite the product description below for a mobile card: 2 sentences, under 40 words, friendly tone."]:
print(repr(pr))
for issue in lint(pr):
print(" -", issue)Output
'Make this description better.' - very short: add context and details - vague words: say exactly what you want - no output format 'Rewrite the product description below for a mobile card: 2 sentences, under 40 words, friendly tone.' - looks OK
Exercise
Exercise: Improve this prompt: "Reply to the customer." The customer wrote that their pressure cooker arrived dented.
Show answer
<role>You are a ShopEase support agent.</role>
Write a reply to the customer message below.
- Apologize once, sincerely.
- Offer a free replacement or a full refund (customer chooses).
- Ask for a photo of the dent and the order ID.
- Under 70 words, plain text, warm tone.
<customer_message>
My pressure cooker arrived dented. Very disappointed.
</customer_message>