Prompt Engineering

Apply these techniques when creating prompts, agents, commands, or system instructions.

For context optimization alongside prompt design (compaction, caching, partitioning), apply the meta-context-engineering skill.

Core Principles

• Treat Claude as context-free: Provide complete information
• Be explicit: Don't say "Analyze this" - say "Analyze for X, Y, Z risks with ratings"
• Explain WHY: Tell motivation, not just what to do
• Define success criteria: Specify what "good" looks like

XML Tags for Structure

Use XML tags to separate prompt components: