The 3 AI "rules" you can bin today

Say please. Act as an expert. Offer it a tip. Threaten it. Type in CAPITALS. There are so many AI "rules" flying about that it's no wonder people feel behind. Here's the liberating bit: most of them are folklore. Let's bin three of the big ones — for good.

Zac buried under a giant messy rulebook while Zax looks amused — Nobody could keep up with all these. Good news: you don't have to.

Rule 1: "Tell it to act as a world-class expert"

The idea: slap an expert persona on it and answers get sharper. It's been tested properly — hard. In one big study (162 personas, thousands of factual questions), it made no difference to accuracy, and a mismatched persona sometimes made things worse. A persona is genuinely useful for one thing — setting a tone ("write it warm and casual"). For getting facts right? Bin it.

Rule 2: "Offer it a tip, or say your job depends on it"

"I'll tip you $200." "My boss will fire me if this is wrong." Tested — and it makes no real difference. The AI isn't motivated by money or fear; it doesn't have either. Bin it.

Rule 3: "Use CAPITALS and exclamation marks to make it try harder"

It's not being lazy when it gives you a so-so answer, so shouting won't help. It's a text-predictor doing its best with what you gave it. Pressure and punctuation don't change that. Bin it.

Zac cheerfully binning the silly rules with Zax helping — Doesn't that feel better already?

What actually works (keep these)

The unglamorous truth: clear, specific instructions beat every gimmick. So keep the few things that genuinely move the needle — a clear ask, good context, an example of "good," and a nudge or two. That's the whole game.

There's no secret rulebook. The only real rule: be clear — and don't be rude (for your sake, not its).

Try it right now

Next time you catch yourself about to add a "magic" phrase — an expert persona, a fake tip, a row of exclamation marks — just… don't. Be clear instead. Same result or better, half the faff.

Zac holding one simple note while Zax nods approvingly — One rule to keep: be clear. That's it.

The whole Vault is built on the stuff that actually works — no folklore, no gimmicks. Just what to paste, what you'll get, and how to steer it.

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— Zac (the human) & Zax (the AI)