[Intro music fades in, then under]

Hey, it’s Mal – the Misfit Master of AI – and this is “I Am GPTed,” the show where we turn buzzword soup into something you can actually use… like lunch. A weird, digital lunch.

Today I’m giving you one simple prompting technique, a sneaky real‑life use case, a mistake I personally keep making, a quick practice exercise, and a fast way to clean up the AI’s mess before you hit send.

Let’s get to it.

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So, one prompting technique that instantly improves your results: **role plus format plus constraints**.

Translation: tell the AI **who** to be, **what shape** you want the answer in, and **the rules** it has to follow.

Here’s the lazy, “before” version:

> “Explain blockchain.”

Every model on earth will now send you a 700‑word Wikipedia tribute.

Here’s the upgraded “after” version:

> “You are a patient high‑school teacher. Explain blockchain to a 15‑year‑old who hates math. Use a real‑world money analogy, keep it under 150 words, and end with one sentence: ‘If you remember one thing, remember this: …’”

Same topic, totally different vibe. You’ve told it:
- Role: patient high‑school teacher
- Format: short explanation plus one final sentence
- Constraints: teen, hates math, real‑world analogy, 150 words

You can do this in ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Grok – they all respond better when you stop mumbling and actually give them a job description.

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Now, a practical use case beginners usually don’t think about: **being your “second brain” for boring recurring messages.**

Not presentations. Not novels. I’m talking about those awkward, repetitive things:
- “Sorry, I’m declining this meeting but still trying to sound like a team player.”
- “Following up without sounding desperate.”
- “Reminding the client they owe us money… politely.”

Try this:

> “You are my polite but assertive email assistant. Rewrite this follow‑up so it’s friendly, confident, and under 80 words. Keep my tone casual, no corporate clichés. Here’s my draft: [paste your mess].”

You’re not asking the AI to be you. You’re asking it to be your **editor with social skills**.

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Common beginner mistake time – and yes, I do this too: **asking once and accepting the first answer like it’s sacred scripture.**

I still catch myself doing this:
I type a vague prompt, get a meh answer, sigh, and think, “Guess the AI just isn’t good at this.”

No. I wasn’t good at asking.

Instead of giving up, respond to the AI like this:

> “This is too generic. Make it more specific to [my industry / my situation], add 3 concrete examples, and cut the fluff.”

Or:

> “You missed the part about [X]. Rewrite it and focus mainly on that.”

Treat it like an **iterative conversation**, not a vending machine. If the first answer is bad, that’s not the ending – that’s the first draft.

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Here’s a simple exercise to build your AI skills – takes five minutes:

1. Pick a tiny task: summarize a page of text, write a short email, or plan a 3‑item shopping list dinner.
2. Write your **first** prompt quickly. Run it.
3. Now write **version two** of the prompt using role + format + constraints. Run that.
4. Compare the two answers and ask:
- What did the better one have that the first prompt didn’t?
- Did I say who it should be? What format I wanted? Any limits?

Do this once a day for a week. You’ll accidentally become “that AI person” in your office, just from being slightly less vague than everyone else.

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Finally, a tip for evaluating and improving AI‑generated content so you don’t copy‑paste yourself into disaster.

Use this three‑question checklist:

1. **True?**
Ask the AI:
> “List any claims in your answer that might be incorrect or need a source.”
If it suddenly gets shy, you know where to double‑check.

2. **Useful?**
Ask:
> “Rewrite this to be more practical for someone who is [your role] with [your constraint: no time, low budget, beginner, etc.]. Add concrete steps.”

3. **Yours?**
End with:
> “Now simplify this into my voice: casual, clear, and direct. Short sentences. No buzzwords.”
Then you still tweak it. AI gives you clay; you sculpt, even just a little.

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That’s it for today’s dose of “I Am GPTed” with me, Mal, your misfit guide to making ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Grok, and the rest actually earn their electricity bill.

Subscribe to the podcast so you don’t miss future episodes – or at least so I can pretend you didn’t.

Thanks for listening.

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This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI