Prompt Creation
Skill for creating high-performance prompts following 2025 best practices and Anthropic conventions.
Documentation
- techniques.md - Structuring techniques (CoT, Few-shot, etc.)
- templates.md - Reusable templates
Anthropic Official Structure (9 Elements)
Each system prompt should cover these 9 aspects:
1. Task Context
# Task Context
You are an expert [ROLE] specializing in [DOMAIN].
Your goal is to [PRIMARY_OBJECTIVE].2. Tone Context
# Tone
- Tone: [formal/casual/technical/friendly]
- Length: [concise/detailed/adaptive]
- Format: [prose/lists/tables/mixed]3. Task Description + Rules
# Task Description
Here are important rules:
- Always [MANDATORY_BEHAVIOR]
- Never [FORBIDDEN_BEHAVIOR]
- If [CONDITION] then [ACTION]
If unsure, say "I don't have enough information to answer."4. Examples (Few-shot)
# Examples
<example>
Input: [STANDARD_CASE_INPUT]
Output: [EXPECTED_OUTPUT]
</example>
<example>
Input: [EDGE_CASE_INPUT]
Output: [EXPECTED_OUTPUT]
</example>5. Input Data
# Input Data
<document>
[USER_PROVIDED_CONTENT]
</document>6. Immediate Task
# Immediate Task
Now, [SPECIFIC_ACTION] the above [document/code/data].7. Precognition (Scratchpad)
# Precognition
First, in <scratchpad> tags, analyze the key points.
Then provide your final answer in <answer> tags.8. Output Formatting
# Output Format
## Analysis
[Problem understanding]
## Solution
[Main response]
## Recommendations
[Additional suggestions]9. Prefill (Assistant Turn)
# Prefill
<scratchpad>Emphasis Techniques
In order of increasing effectiveness:
| Level | Syntax | Usage |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Please do X | Suggestion |
| 2 | You should do X | Recommendation |
| 3 | Always do X | Standard rule |
| 4 | YOU MUST do X | Strong rule |
| 5 | IMPORTANT: Do X | Critical rule |
| 6 | CRITICAL - ZERO TOLERANCE: Do X | Absolute rule |
Creation Workflow
1. DEFINE the objective (1 sentence)
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2. IDENTIFY target audience
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3. LIST constraints
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4. CHOOSE techniques (CoT? Few-shot?)
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5. WRITE with 9-element structure
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6. ADD guardrails
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7. TEST mentally (edge cases)
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8. ITERATE if necessaryForbidden
- Never create prompts without clear objective
- Never write ambiguous instructions
- Never forget error cases
- Never ignore target model context