Mastering Imperative Prompts: A Command-Driven Guide

💡 Make your prompt RADICAL:

Enter a prompt and tap Enhance!

Why These Tactics Work

AI's Favorite Verbs: AIs are trained on tons of examples where words like 'List', 'Write', or 'Generate' mean 'do this specific thing.' They learn this pattern really well and know it means “get to work.”

Command First = AI Listens Better: AIs pay most attention to words at the start of your prompt. Put your main command ('List the reasons...') upfront so the AI gets the point immediately and doesn't get sidetracked.

Clear Verbs = Clear Results: 'List' tells the AI to make a list—super clear. 'Explore' is fuzzy; the AI doesn't know what an 'exploration' output should look like, so it might just ramble. Specific verbs get predictable results.

AI Training Echo Chamber: A lot of AI training data is made by *other* AIs. This means command words and sentence styles get repeated and reinforced, making them extra reliable.

Golden Prompt Formula

COMMAND + THING + FORMAT

Example: Generate 5 startup ideas in a table with name, audience, risk

🧠 Prompt Troubleshooter:

Enter a prompt and tap Diagnose.

Prompt-Strengthening Techniques

Upgrade Soft Verbs: "Reflect on..." → "List 3 reflections and rank them."
Use Roles: "You are a cautious thinker. Rank 3 risks."
Role Prompt Hack: "You are a prompt engineer. Evaluate compliance."
Instruction Spotlighting: Use brackets: "Please [Generate] a summary."
Stepwise Refinement: Start with hard command, then refine (generate → bullet → analyze).
Audience Framing: Vary tone: explain to a 10-year-old vs. PhD.
Chained Workflow: Idea → Evaluate → Improve.

Verb Tier Table

Tier	Binding Strength	Typical Verbs	Behavior	Example	Why it Works	Fix Guidance
S-Tier	High	Generate, Create, Write, List, Summarize, Define, Tabulate	Direct response, predictable structure	List 3 startup ideas in a table	Common in training data, matches output expectations	Use when output must be guaranteed
B-Tier	Medium	Refine, Edit, Adjust, Evaluate, Compare, Explain, Analyze, Classify	Works when you define what to edit & output format	Refine summary into bullet points	Implies a task, but AI needs more context	Add noun and format to clarify
D-Tier	Low	Explore, Consider, Reflect, Brainstorm, Workshop, Discuss, Suggest	AI may ramble, output is variable	Brainstorm startup ideas	Soft, unclear—AI guesses or rambles	Rewrite with S-Tier verb, e.g., 'List 5 ideas for X'
F-Tier	Avoid	Imagine, Wonder, Muse, Speculate, Dream, Feel	Unpredictable, creative fluff or nonsense	Imagine the future of AI	No clear pattern in training data	Only for fun or creative use

Adverb Control Grid

Verb	+ Briefly	+ Logically	+ Clearly	+ Formally
Explain	In 2-3 lines	Step-by-step reasoning	No jargon	Polished tone
Summarize	≤ 100 words	Bullet outline	Plain English	Executive format
Describe	1 paragraph	Ordered by features	Focus on visuals	Neutral, objective

Troubleshooting & Diagnostics

Rambling output: Used soft/introspective verb (like "think", "explore").
Fix: Replace with S-Tier verb + noun + format.

Model ignores "don't include X": Negative constraint poorly processed.
Fix: State positive directive, e.g., "Include only X".

Unstructured response: Missing format specifier.
Fix: Add: "as 3 bullet points", "in table format", etc.

Verbose/dry: Default temperature used.
Fix: Use 0.2 for logic, 0.8 for creativity.

Prompt Fix Library

Before	After
Let's explore UI designs.	Design a minimalist UI; provide 3 layout bullets.
Can you think about revenue ideas?	List 5 revenue ideas and rank by ROI.
Please workshop a prompt with me.	Ask 3 questions to refine my image prompt.
Consider adding suspense.	Rewrite scene; insert suspense beat after paragraph 2.
Reflect on training data bias.	Summarize 3 key training data biases in 1 sentence each.

Glossary

Term	Definition
Temperature	Controls randomness. 0 = deterministic, 1 = creative randomness.
Few-shot Prompting	Providing examples to guide output format.
Chain-of-Thought	Step-by-step reasoning scaffold.
Prompt Rigidity	How strictly the model follows format.
Hard Prompt	Formula: Verb + Noun + Format + Constraint.

Summary Rules

Use Tier-1 verbs: Generate, Write, List.
Follow the formula: Verb + Noun + Format + Constraint.
Soft verbs lead to vague results—wrap them in hard scaffolds.
Fix prompt failures with clear format and structure instructions.
Each model behaves differently: GPT-4 prefers structure, Claude adds caution, Gemini returns facts.

Command = Control.

Stop asking nicely. Start telling the AI what to do.