Engineering Prompts

LEVEL 1: QUICKSTART ⚡

Foundation First (Always Apply):

Clarity: Explicit instructions + success criteria
Context & Motivation: Explain WHY, not just WHAT
Positive Framing: Say what TO do, not what NOT to do

Then Assess:

Simple task? → Stop here. Foundation is enough.
Complex task? → Add advanced techniques sparingly
Test & Iterate: Measure effectiveness, refine based on results

Key insight: The best prompt achieves goals with minimum necessary structure.

LEVEL 2: DIAGNOSTICS 🔧

Output Problems → Solutions:

| Problem | Solution | |---------|----------| | Too generic | Add specificity + examples | | Off-topic | Add context explaining goals | | Wrong format | Examples or prefilling | | Unreliable on complex tasks | Prompt chaining | | Unnecessary preambles | Prefill or "start directly with..." | | Hallucinations | "If unsure, acknowledge uncertainty" | | Shallow reasoning | Chain of thought |

Process Problems → Fixes:

| Mistake | Fix | |---------|-----| | Over-engineering | Start minimal, add only what helps | | Negative framing | Say what TO do instead | | No motivation | Explain the WHY | | No iteration | Test, measure, refine |

LEVEL 3: THE 12 TECHNIQUES 🛠️

Foundation (Always Apply)

| Technique | What It Does | Cost | |-----------|--------------|------| | 1. Clarity | Explicit instructions, success criteria | Minimal | | 2. Context & Motivation | Explain WHY you want something | Minimal | | 3. Positive Framing | Say what TO do, not what NOT to do | Minimal | | 4. XML Structure | Separate sections in complex prompts | ~50-100 tokens |

Note: XML is less essential with Claude 4.x - use when genuinely needed.

Advanced (Apply When Needed)

| Technique | When to Use | Cost | |-----------|-------------|------| | 5. Chain of Thought | Reasoning, analysis, math | 2-3x output | | 6. Prompt Chaining | Multi-step, complex tasks | Multiple calls | | 7. Multishot Examples | Pattern learning, format | 200-1K each | | 8. System Role | Domain expertise needed | Minimal | | 9. Prefilling | Strict format requirements | Minimal | | 10. Long Context | 20K+ token inputs | Better accuracy | | 11. Context Budget | Repeated use, conversations | 90% savings | | 12. Tool Docs | Function calling, agents | 100-500/tool |

LEVEL 4: DESIGN CHECKLIST 📋

Before Writing:

[ ] Core task clear?
[ ] Output format defined?
[ ] Constraints known? (latency/cost/accuracy)
[ ] One-off or repeated use?

Complexity Assessment:

Simple (extraction, Q&A) → Foundation only
Medium (analysis, code gen) → + CoT, examples
Complex (research, novel problems) → + Chaining, role

Cost Optimization:

Cache system prompts + reference docs (90% savings)
Batch non-urgent work (50% savings)
Skip CoT for simple tasks (saves 2-3x)

Deliverable:

Prompt + techniques used + rationale + token estimate

LEVEL 5: ADVANCED TOPICS 🚀

Tool Integration

When to use MCP tools during prompt engineering:

Need latest practices?
└─ mcp__plugin_essentials_perplexity

Complex analysis needed?
└─ mcp__plugin_essentials_sequential-thinking

Need library docs?
└─ mcp__plugin_essentials_context7

Context Management

Prompt Caching:

Cache: System prompts, reference docs, examples
Savings: 90% on cached content
Write: 25% of standard cost
Read: 10% of standard cost

Long Context Tips:

Place documents BEFORE queries
Use XML tags: <document>, <source>
Ground responses in quotes
30% better performance with proper structure

Token Optimization

Reducing Token Usage:

Concise, clear instructions (no fluff)
Reuse examples across calls (cache them)
Structured output reduces back-and-forth
Tool use instead of long context when possible

Cost-Specific Anti-Patterns

❌ Ignoring caching - Not leveraging repeated content (90% savings lost) ❌ Over-requesting CoT - Chain of thought for simple tasks (2-3x wasted) ❌ Redundant examples - 5 examples when 2 suffice ❌ No batching - Real-time calls for non-urgent work (50% savings lost)

See LEVEL 2: Diagnostics for general fixes.

LEVEL 6: REFERENCES 📚

Deep Dive Documentation

Detailed Technique Catalog:

reference/technique-catalog.md - Each technique explained with examples, token costs, combination strategies

Real-World Examples:

reference/examples.md - Before/after pairs for coding, analysis, extraction, agent tasks

Research Papers:

reference/research.md - Latest Anthropic research, benchmarks, best practices evolution