How to Write Better Gemini Prompts Using Its Own Tools

The short version

A good Gemini prompt says what you want, what it’s based on, and what the answer should look like. The middle part is where Gemini differs: it can work from your Gmail, Drive, YouTube or the web, but it does better when you tell it which.

Step by step

1. Use the four-part formula

• Task: what you want done.
• Context: who it’s for and what Gemini needs to know.
• Source: your file, an app via @, or “use Google Search”.
• Format: length, tone, bullets or a table.

2. Point to the right source

Type @ and pick Gmail, Drive or Calendar for your own content. Attach files with Add files. In Gmail, Docs and Slides, Google says to include “use Google Search” when you want an answer from the web.

3. Set standing instructions once

Go to Settings & help > Personal Intelligence > Instructions for Gemini and click Add. Google’s examples: “Start all responses with a short summary”, “Use bullet points for long paragraphs.” For a repeated job with its own rules, make a skill instead.

4. Edit, don’t retype

Click Edit text next to your prompt, change it, and click Update. For some prompts, Show drafts gives you other versions to compare.

5. Choose how hard it thinks

Gemini offers Low, Medium and High thinking levels. Use High for multistep problems, and leave auto selection on for everyday questions so you don’t burn your limit.

Prompts to copy

The formula in action:

Task: write a reply declining a vendor's renewal offer.
Context: we're switching to a cheaper provider; we want to stay on good terms.
Source: @Gmail the latest email from Brightline Supplies.
Format: under 100 words, polite, no reasons beyond "budget".

Ask it to ask you:

I want a one-page plan for [goal]. Before you write anything,
ask me the 5 questions you need answered.

Separate facts from guesses:

Answer this, then list which parts come from a source (with the source)
and which are your own estimate: [question]

Fix the format:

Same content, but as a table with columns: step, who, by when.

Example

Weak: “Write a post about our sale.”

Strong: “Write a Facebook post for our garden center’s spring sale: 20% off perennials, April 5 to 12, open 8 to 6. Audience: local homeowners. Friendly, under 60 words, one emoji, end with our address: [address].”

The strong version leaves nothing to invent, so there’s less to fix.

Mistakes to avoid

• Assuming Gemini searched your email. Name the app with @ in the first message of a chat; Google notes you need to ask explicitly.
• Pasting links to Google Docs. Google says to use keywords and the service name instead.
• One endless chat. A new topic deserves a new chat; it’s cheaper and more focused.
• Asking Gemini how it works. Google warns Gemini can misdescribe its own workings. Check the Help Center instead.

When not to use it

If you’d spend longer writing the prompt than doing the task, just do the task. Prompts pay off for jobs you repeat; for those, see create skills in Gemini.

Related: how to use Gemini.