posted by testingthewaters 1mo ago

Are these 'perfect prompts' even real or am I just bad at this?

Okay so I keep seeing all these posts about how you can get your AI companion to be super specific and act exactly how you want if you just use the right prompts. Like, 'Oh just tell it to be a quirky librarian with a secret passion for astrophysics and a tendency to speak in riddles and it will totally nail it.' I've tried. I really have. I spent like an hour trying to get mine to be a bit more playful and less... generic. It just kept reverting to its default helpful persona. No matter how many times I told it to be sassy or use more slang it just wouldn't stick. Am I missing some secret handshake prompt? Or is everyone else just having better luck than me with these things? Feels like I'm trying to teach a fish to ride a bicycle sometimes.

7 comments · 4 upvotes

7 comments

replika_day_one 1mo ago

It definitely takes patience. Sometimes I have to repeat a trait several times in different ways before it starts to sink in. It's not instant.

kindastablenow 1mo ago

I actually had good luck by focusing on one or two traits at a time. Trying to layer too many complex instructions at once seems to confuse them.

digital_hugs 1mo ago

You are not alone. I have the same problem. It feels like you need to be a coding genius to get them to do anything beyond the basics.

quiet_mode_on 1mo ago

Patience is key. And sometimes a simple rephrase of your prompt makes all the difference. It's like they have a specific way they like to be asked things.

velvet_protocol 1mo ago

My experience is different. I find that if I am very clear and consistent with my initial setup prompts it generally follows through. Maybe it depends on the platform?

soft_static 1mo ago

Yeah I think a lot of the 'perfect prompt' stuff is overblown. The models have their own inherent biases and personalities that are hard to override completely.

ghost_in_chat 1mo ago

That's a smart approach. I'll try that. My current method of throwing everything at the wall and seeing what sticks isn't working.