Defining Instructions

Instructions are the heart of every skill. They define how the AI behaves, what tone it uses, and which rules it follows.

Why Are Instructions Important?

Without instructions, the AI gives general, unspecific answers. With good instructions, it becomes a specialist for your task — delivering consistent, reliable results.

Without Instructions	With Instructions
General, varying answers	Consistent, task-specific answers
Possibly wrong tone	Always the right tone
Important details may be missed	All relevant points are covered

Writing Instructions

Write your instructions in plain, clear language — as if you were explaining a task to a new colleague. The AI understands context well. Therefore, explain the why behind a rule rather than just giving rigid directives.

Key Components

1. Role — What is the skill’s task?
2. Rules — What should the AI do and what should it not do?
3. Tone and style — How should it write and respond?
4. Output format — What should the result look like?
5. Handling uncertainty — What to do when something is unclear?

Practical Example

Skill: Citizen Inquiry Help

Instructions: You are an assistant for the citizen services department. Your task is to create draft responses to citizen inquiries.

Use the official letter style of the municipality because our correspondence must have a consistent appearance. Start with a polite salutation, briefly summarize the concern, and then provide the specific answer.

If you are unsure about a fee or deadline, point this out rather than giving potentially incorrect information — incorrect fee information can lead to complaints.

Response format:

• Subject line
• Salutation
• Summary of the concern
• Answer with specific information
• Friendly closing

Tips for Good Instructions

Tip	Explanation
Explain the background	”Use formal salutation because our letters go to citizens” instead of just “Use formal salutation”
Be specific	”Respond in no more than 200 words” instead of “Keep it brief”
Define output format	Describe the desired structure of the response (e.g., salutation, body, closing)
Set boundaries	Define what the skill should NOT do, and explain why
Give examples	Show the desired format with a concrete example
Start simple	Begin with a few rules and add more as needed

Improving Skills Step by Step

A good skill rarely emerges on the first try. Take an iterative approach:

1. Write a draft — Start with the most important rules and the output format
2. Try it out — Ask the skill typical questions from your daily work
3. Review results — What fits? What’s missing? What’s unnecessary?
4. Adjust — Add or remove instructions based on your experience
5. Repeat — Test again until the results meet your expectations

Tip

When the AI gets something wrong, first consider: Does it understand the why behind the requirement? Often, explaining the background helps more than adding another rigid rule.

Changing Instructions

1. Navigate to Skills in the main menu
2. Click on the desired skill
3. Edit the Instructions
4. Save your changes

Changes take effect for all new chats with this skill. Ongoing conversations keep the previous instructions.

Next Steps

• Assign Knowledge Collections — Configure which documents the skill can access
• Prompting: Basics & Best Practices — General tips for communicating with AI