C - CONTEXT

“What’s going on?”

Give background information. This sets the stage for the task.

Example: “You’re helping a busy parent plan healthy meals for picky kids.”

R - ROLE

“Who are you pretending to be?”

Assign a role to the AI (or user) to guide its tone and behavior.

Example: “Act as a professional nutritionist.”

I - INSTRUCTION

“What do you want done?”

Give a clear command or question.

Example: “Create a weekly meal plan with 3 meals and 2 snacks per day.”

S - SPECIFICATION

“What rules or limits?”

Add boundaries, format, tone, or special requirements.

Example: “Use ingredients that are under $10 per meal, avoid dairy.”

P - PERFORMANCE

“What does success look like?”

Define the standard of a good result.

Example: “Meals should be easy to prepare in under 30 minutes.”

E - EXAMPLE

“Show a sample so I get it.”

Give a sample output or answer to show what you’re expecting.

Example: “Monday: Breakfast – Oatmeal with banana and almond butter…”

Put Simply:

You’re telling the AI:

Here’s what’s going on (C), who you are (R), what I want (I), any special rules (S), how to know it’s good (P), and a quick example (E).