The golden rules of prompt engineering
This section is not intended to serve as a definitive guide to prompt engineering. In fact, the field is an ever-expanding one. Since many LLMs are demonstrating emerging capabilities that were not initially anticipated, it is only natural that our methods of interacting with these linguistic experts will also be refined over time. In other words, as LLMs evolve to better model and understand human nature, we in turn learn new ways of interacting with them. In this section, I aim to present some of the most commonly used techniques in prompt engineering, as well as the basic principles that govern the field. As stated in the previous section, writing a good prompt requires a fine balance between several parameters. Here are some of the most important aspects to consider when building prompts for a RAG application.
Accuracy and clarity in expression
The prompt should be clear and precise, avoiding ambiguity. The more clearly you state what...