The Life Prompt: Teaching AI Who You Are
Why AI gives better answers when it knows you
You've probably noticed something frustrating about AI.
You ask a question and get a perfectly reasonable answer... that's completely wrong for your situation.
"What should I make for dinner?" returns a recipe with ingredients you'd never buy. "How should I handle this work situation?" gives advice that doesn't fit your industry at all.
The problem isn't the AI. It's that the AI doesn't know you.
The Missing Context
Imagine asking a stranger on the street for restaurant recommendations. They might suggest a great steakhouse — but you're vegetarian. A fancy place downtown — but you have kids and need somewhere casual.
That stranger isn't dumb. They just don't have the context they need to help you well.
AI works the same way.
Enter the Life Prompt
A "life prompt" is a document that tells AI who you are. Your situation. Your preferences. Your constraints.
You write it once, then paste it at the start of conversations when you want personalized help.
Three Layers of Life Prompts
I think of life prompts in three layers, depending on how much you want AI to know:
Layer 1: Life Prompt Light
The basics. Who you are, your living situation, health considerations, family context, what matters to you. Takes 5 minutes to create. Perfect for everyday questions — recipes, travel planning, gift ideas, health research.
Layer 2: The Deep Personal Prompt
Goes well beyond the basics. Your communication style. How you make decisions. Your values and priorities. What motivates you. Past experiences that shape how you see things. This is the prompt that makes AI feel like it actually gets you.
Layer 3: The Professional Prompt
How you work. Your approach to product thinking. Your coding style and preferences. Your architecture decisions. Your infrastructure. The tools you use. This turns AI into a true working partner who builds things your way.
Start with Layer 1
I built a free tool to help you create your Life Prompt Light in about 5 minutes:
Build Your Life Prompt →
10 simple questions. Copy your result. Start getting better answers immediately.
No account needed. Nothing to install.
What Changes
Without a life prompt:
"What's a good hobby to pick up?"
AI suggests rock climbing, learning to code, and starting a podcast
With even a basic life prompt:
"What's a good hobby to pick up?"
AI suggests bird watching, watercolor painting, and audiobook clubs — because it knows you're 68 with a bad knee who prefers quiet activities
Same question. Actually useful answers.
The bottom line: You don't become "good at AI" by learning special tricks. You become good at it by helping AI understand who it's talking to.
Ready to try it?
Create Your Life Prompt →