Persona
Instructs the AI to adopt a specific role or expert persona
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What Is This Pattern?
The Persona Pattern instructs the AI to adopt a specific role, profession, or perspective when generating responses. By defining who the AI should "be," you get responses that match the knowledge, tone, and approach of that persona.
How It Works
You explicitly tell the AI to act as a specific expert (e.g., "You are a senior software architect"). The AI then filters its responses through that lens, using appropriate terminology, frameworks, and thinking patterns associated with that role.
When To Use This Pattern
- You need domain-specific expertise or terminology
- You want responses tailored to a specific audience
- You need consistent tone and perspective across multiple prompts
- You want the AI to apply specialized frameworks or methodologies
Example
✅ After (Strong)
Act as a senior software engineer with 10 years of experience...Best Practices
- Be specific about the expertise level (junior, senior, expert)
- Include relevant context about the persona's background
- Combine with other patterns for better results
- Use consistent personas across related prompts
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Being too vague ("act as an expert" - expert in what?)
- Choosing personas that don't match your actual need
- Forgetting to maintain the persona throughout the conversation
- Using conflicting personas in the same prompt