🎧📖 Learn Smarter!
This lesson has audio and text.
Listen to the audio and read the text together for better understanding and faster learning
NB:
📝 Get a notebook and a pen dedicated to your AI learning.
This is not passive listening. Be intentional, take notes, and learn actively.
Program:
Professional AI Program.
Level:
Foundation / Beginner
Target Audience:
Professionals & executives
Business owners & entrepreneurs
Freelancers & consultants
Career switchers
Managers & team leads.
Duration:
45–60 minutes.
Lesson Objectives
By the end of this lesson, learners will be able to:
Understand what a prompt is
Write clear and effective prompts
Control AI outputs with better instructions
Avoid common prompting mistakes
Use prompting to improve productivity and results.
Listen to the audio lesson while reading the text
What Is a Prompt?
A prompt is the instruction or question you give to an AI system.
Think of AI like a very smart assistant:
The clearer your instruction, the better the result
Vague instructions produce weak answers
Specific prompts produce useful outcomes.
AI responds to how you communicate.
Weak Prompt vs Strong Prompt
Weak Prompt:
“Write an email.”
Strong Prompt:
“Write a professional email to a client explaining a 2-day project delay, apologizing politely and offering a new delivery date.”
Clear context = better output.
The 5 Key Elements of a Good Prompt
Use this simple structure:
1️⃣ Role – Who should the AI act as?
2️⃣ Task – What do you want done?
3️⃣ Context – Why or for whom?
4️⃣ Tone – Formal, friendly, persuasive, simple?
5️⃣ Format – Email, list, table, paragraph?
Example:
“Act as a marketing consultant. Write a short LinkedIn post for a Nigerian tech startup announcing a new AI service. Use a professional but friendly tone.”
Practical Prompting for Work
Examples:
Email Writing
“Draft a polite follow-up email to a potential client who hasn’t responded in one week.”
Business Planning
“Create a simple business plan outline for an AI-powered customer support service in Africa.”
Learning & Research
“Explain machine learning in simple terms for a beginner with no tech background.”
Common Prompting Mistakes
Avoid:
Being too vague
Giving no context
Expecting AI to guess your needs
Using AI output without review
Prompting is a skill, not magic.
Practice Activity (Core Skill)
Take the test below:
Choose a real work task
Write a weak prompt
Rewrite it as a strong prompt using the 5 elements
Compare results
This is where skill develops.
Why Prompting Matters for Professionals
Strong prompting:
Saves time
Improves quality
Reduces rework
Increases confidence using AI
Separates casual users from professionals
Prompting is the new digital communication skill.
Learner Notice
This lesson contains educational content only and does not request personal or sensitive information.
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