I've been in a very long chat session with an AI while building a complex project. Along the way, I discovered a powerful technique that has completely changed how I work with it, and I wanted to share it.
The problem with long chats is that the AI can sometimes forget the specific rules or corrections you've taught it earlier on. You end up repeating yourself, which slows everything down. But what if you could capture that learning and make it permanent?
It turns out, you can.
The "Aha!" Moment: Distill "Lessons Learned"
When a chat session feels "complete," or if it's just getting too long and slow, you can ask the AI a simple but powerful question:
"Based on our entire conversation, please analyze all of my corrections and generate a concise list of 'rules' or 'standing instructions' that you learned."
The AI will then process your entire history and distill it into a perfect summary of your unique workflow and preferences.
A Real-World Example
During my project, we hit a persistent formatting bug. The AI kept generating Markdown that looked broken in my user interface. After some back-and-forth, we figured out that a simpler, older syntax (using four-space indents for code) worked perfectly.
This became a "lesson learned." When I asked the AI to summarize at the end, one of the rules it generated for me was:
- Use Indented Code Blocks: Do not use triple-backticks for code blocks. Use the four-space indented format for maximum compatibility with the user's UI.
The Payoff: Making the Knowledge Permanent with "System Instructions"
And here's the best part. Instead of just using this list as the first prompt in a new chat (where it might eventually be forgotten), you should copy it into the AI's "System Instructions" or "Custom Instructions" feature.
This is a special section in the AI's settings where you can provide permanent, high-priority guidance that influences every future conversation.
By placing the "lessons learned" there, you are essentially upgrading the AI's base programming just for you. The new chat is now instantly and permanently working from this accumulated knowledge. It will not forget.
I am no longer hesitant to start a new chat. This simple technique of distilling lessons from one conversation and embedding them into the AI's core instructions for the next has made my workflow incredibly efficient and enjoyable. Give it a try
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