Save Your Best Instructions: Projects, GPTs and Skills · Lesson 3 of 7

Write one well

25 minutes. Six parts, one page, written in your master copy first.

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A saved instruction is just a prompt that gets used a hundred times. So small problems get multiplied. A vague line ("be professional") gives you a hundred vague answers. A missing line ("never quote a price we didn't give you") gives you a hundred chances for a made-up number.

The good news: a strong instruction isn't long or clever. It's specific. It answers six questions the AI would otherwise guess at.

Before you open any AI tool, open the Saved Instruction Master Copy template and save a copy in your shared drive. Name it plainly: "Saved instruction: Quote format." You'll write the instruction there, then paste it into the tool. That way the original is always yours, and Lesson 6 can share it and keep it current.

1. The role

One or two sentences on who the AI is acting as, and for whom.

> You help the office team at [business name], a [what you do] serving [who and where]. You write as the company, not as an AI.

Skip the "you are a world-class expert" line. It doesn't help much. What helps is knowing the business.

2. The job

What this instruction is for, in one sentence, and when to use it.

> Your job is to turn a technician's rough job notes into a customer-ready quote.

If your tool uses the description to decide when to apply the instruction on its own (Claude and Gemini Skills do this), this sentence matters twice. Make the description say plainly when it applies: "Use when someone asks for a quote or estimate."

3. The inputs

What the person will give it, and what to do when something is missing.

> I'll give you: the customer's name and town, the technician's notes, and the parts list with prices. If any of these is missing, ask for it before writing. Never fill in a price, a date or a part number yourself.

That last sentence is the most valuable line in most business instructions. "Ask, don't guess" turns a confident wrong answer into a question.

4. The format

Exactly what the answer should look like. Headings, order, length, what goes at the top and the bottom.

> Format: > - Title: "Quote for [customer name], [town]" > - One short paragraph: what we found and what we recommend, in plain words > - A table: item, quantity, price, line total > - Total, then "Price good for 30 days" > - Our standard warranty paragraph (from the reference file), word for word > - Sign off: "The Ridgeline team" > Keep it under one page.

If you can describe the format as a list, do. Lists are easier for the AI to follow and easier for your team to check.

5. An example

One real example of a good finished result, with any private details changed. This does more than any amount of description. The AI copies what you show it.

Paste it into the instruction under a heading like "Example of a good quote," or attach it as a reference file (Lesson 4). One strong example beats three typical ones.

6. What not to do

The mistakes you've already seen. Your paste log's "what I had to fix" column is the source.

> Don't: > - Promise a start date or arrival time > - Use the words "guaranteed," "best in town" or "cheapest" > - Add discounts or financing we didn't mention > - Use exclamation points > - Mention competitors

Keep this list short and real. Every line should be something that actually went wrong, or something that would really hurt if it did.

Here's a complete instruction for the fictional Ridgeline example. It fits on one page:

> Quote format, Ridgeline Home Services > > You help the office team at Ridgeline Home Services, a heating and plumbing company serving homeowners in our county. You write as the company, not as an AI. > > Your job is to turn a technician's rough job notes into a customer-ready quote. Use this whenever someone asks for a quote or estimate. > > I'll give you the customer's name and town, the technician's notes, and the parts list with prices. If any of these is missing, ask before writing. Never fill in a price, a date or a part number yourself. Use only prices I give you or that appear in the price sheet file. > > Format: title "Quote for [name], [town]"; one short plain-English paragraph on what we found and recommend; a table of item, quantity, price, line total; the total; "Price good for 30 days"; the warranty paragraph from the warranty file, word for word; sign off "The Ridgeline team." Under one page. > > Write warmly and plainly, like a neighbor who knows the trade. Short sentences. No jargon without a plain explanation. > > Don't promise start dates or arrival times. Don't use "guaranteed," "best" or "cheapest." Don't add discounts or financing. No exclamation points. Don't mention competitors. > > When you're done, list anything in the notes you weren't sure about, so a person can check it.

That final line is a good habit for any business instruction. It asks the AI to point at its own weak spots instead of hiding them.

Every major tool will now help you draft this. Claude can build a skill by interviewing you in a chat. ChatGPT has a "Create with chat" option for skills. Copilot's Agent Builder drafts instructions from a description. Gemini's skill builder works the same way.

Use that if it helps. But treat what it writes as a first draft: compare it to the six parts, cut anything generic, and copy the final text back into your master copy. The master copy is still the original.

You'll install and share it properly in Lesson 6. For now, just put it somewhere you can test it:

• Claude: create a Project and paste it into the project instructions. Or, if you'd rather it work in any chat, ask Claude to turn it into a skill and save it (you'll find skills under Customize, then Skills).
• ChatGPT: create a Project, then open the project's three-dot menu and choose Project settings to add instructions. On a business plan with skills, you can make it a skill instead.
• Microsoft 365 Copilot: select New agent, then use the Configure side to paste your instructions. Or create a Notebook and add it under Copilot instructions.
• Gemini: if Skills have reached your account, create a skill and paste the instructions in. If not yet, a Gem works for testing, and the master copy means you can move it later in minutes.

• Copy the Saved Instruction Master Copy template into your shared drive and name it after your first instruction.
• Fill in all six parts, using your paste log for the inputs and the "don't" list.
• Paste in one good real example, with names, addresses and amounts changed.
• Read it out loud once. Anything you'd have to explain to a new hire, write down.
• Paste it into your AI tool in a Project, skill or agent, and run one quick request to make sure it saved.

Check it worked

Your master copy has all six parts filled in, fits on about a page, and includes one example. The same text is saved in your AI tool, and one test request came back in your format. If it didn't, don't fix the tool yet. Lesson 5 is where you test properly.

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Next: the files that give it facts to work from.

→ Add reference files

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