Gemini in Google Workspace · Lesson 6 of 7

Gems, skills and prompts that work

20 minutes. Learn the four parts of a good prompt, then save your best one so nobody has to type it again.

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By now you've noticed something. The difference between a useless Gemini answer and a great one is usually the prompt. And the great prompts are long. Nobody wants to type "Friendly, three sentences, no exclamation points, use only prices from the price sheet" twenty times a day.

This lesson does two things. First, a simple way to write prompts that work. Second, a way to save them: Gems today, and skills, which Google is rolling out right now to replace Gems.

Google's own help for writing Gem instructions names four parts. They work for any prompt, anywhere in Workspace:

| Part | What Google says | Comfort Zone example | |---|---|---| | Persona | "Tell your Gem what role to play and how to respond" | "You're the office manager at a family-owned heating and cooling company." | | Task | "Tell the Gem what you want Gemini to do or create" | "Draft a reply confirming the appointment." | | Context | "Provide as much background as possible" | "Tune-up is $129. Tech calls 30 minutes ahead. We don't give exact arrival times." | | Format | "Be specific when specifying desired structure" | "Three sentences. Friendly. No exclamation points. Sign it 'Tanya, Comfort Zone.'" |

Add two of your own, learned the hard way in Lessons 3 to 5:

• Limits: "Use only the facts I gave you. Don't promise arrival times, refunds or discounts."
• Gaps: "If you need a fact you don't have, write [CHECK] instead of guessing."

You don't need all six every time. A quick summary needs only a task. A customer email needs all six. If an answer disappoints you, look at which part was missing, add it, and ask again.

Google also suggests a shortcut: write a rough version of your instructions and ask Gemini to rewrite them into something clearer before you save them.

Gems are saved instructions in the Gemini app. You've been able to make one by going to gemini.google.com, clicking Explore Gems, then New Gem, naming it, writing instructions, testing it in the preview and clicking Save. You can also add files under Knowledge.

Skills are Google's replacement. Google announced them on September 30, 2026, and describes them as "reusable, custom instructions that you can leverage any time you're prompting Gemini." Unlike Gems, skills work inside Workspace apps like Docs and Gmail, not just the Gemini app, and you can use more than one in a single prompt. They're built on an open format called SKILL.md, so a skill you write in one place can be copied to another.

Here are the dates Google published for business accounts. Your admin's release setting decides which dates apply to you.

| What | When (per Google) | |---|---| | Skills in Workspace apps, Rapid Release domains | October 5 to October 12, 2026 | | Skills in the Gemini app | Starting October 13, 2026, finishing by mid-November | | Skills in Workspace apps, Scheduled Release domains | Starting October 19, 2026, finishing by mid-November | | Gems move to Settings in the Gemini app (you can still create and edit them) | November 17, 2026 | | Gems stop working for business accounts; remaining Gems become draft skills | March 1, 2027 |

What this means for you:

• Your Gems aren't lost. Google says remaining Gems will be automatically moved into skills as inactive drafts, keeping their names, instructions and files. You'll need to review and turn each one on.
• Skills don't sync between places yet. Google says a skill made in the Gemini app and a skill made in Workspace apps are separate. If you want one in both, you make it twice.
• On October 10, 2026, Google's Gemini app help still said skills there aren't available for work accounts. That matches the October 13 start date. If you don't see them yet, wait a week and look again.

For more background, read our article [From Gems to Skills](/articles/gemini-gems-to-skills).

Pick the one prompt you've used most in Lessons 3 to 5. For most offices, it's the customer reply. Then use whichever option you have today.

Option A: A skill in Workspace (if your admin has it on)

Google's Workspace Studio help gives these steps:

• Go to Google Workspace Studio.
• Click Skills on the left.
• Click Create.
• Describe what you want in the skill builder chat. Paste your six-part prompt from Part 1.
• Review and adjust the instructions it writes. You can also choose where the skill can search, such as Drive, Gmail, Chat, Calendar or the web.
• Test it, then click Turn on.

To use it: in Gmail, Docs, Slides, Drive or Chat, click Ask Gemini, type @, then type the skill's name and pick it.

To share it with the team: open the skill, click Share, set it to My organization, then Copy link. Google says the people you send it to can make their own copy.

One limit, in Google's words: "A skill directs how Gemini acts within its current capabilities. It doesn't grant Gemini new powers." A skill can't make Gemini send email.

Option B: A Gem (if skills aren't on yet)

Make a Gem with the steps in Part 2. It will keep working until March 2027, and Google says it will move into skills as a draft. Your instructions carry over, so the work isn't wasted.

Either way

Call it something plain, like Customer Reply, Comfort Zone. Write the instructions on your Gemini Prompt Card first, so you have a copy outside Google. If your prices or policies change, update the card and the skill together.

And the rule from Lesson 3 still holds: a skill writes a better first draft. A person still checks and sends every customer email.

• Rewrite your most-used prompt using the six parts: persona, task, context, format, limits and gaps.
• Save it as a skill (Option A) or a Gem (Option B).
• Test it on three real emails or documents. Fix the instructions if anything comes back wrong.
• If your admin hasn't confirmed which release track you're on, ask, so you know when skills will appear.

Check it worked

• You have one saved instruction (a skill or a Gem) that you've tested on real work.
• Its instructions are also written on your Prompt Card.
• You know whether your business is on Rapid Release or Scheduled Release.
• Everyone who will use it knows a person still sends every customer email.

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Next: put it all together in your own Gmail, Docs and Sheets, and build the habit.

→ Lesson 7: Capstone: five everyday tasks and a two-week habit

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