ChatGPT Custom GPT Prompts that survive the first real user
Spec the job, write instructions ChatGPT will actually follow, pin knowledge you own, and test with a second input before you share the GPT. Official builder only.
In short: This page contains 15 copy-paste ready prompts, organized into 5 categories with a description and pro tip for each. The first 5 prompts are free instantly, no signup needed. Hand-curated and tested by the AI Academy team.
Spec the GPT
3 promptsOne-job brief
1/15✨ What it does
ChatGPT writes a one-job Custom GPT brief from [JOB] and [DONE], including never-do rules and files you named. Create the GPT only if the job is still one sentence.
Help me spec a Custom GPT. Job: [JOB]. User: [WHO]. Done means: [DONE]. Out of scope: [NOT]. Write: name, one-sentence job, 5 must-do rules, 5 never-do rules, and 3 knowledge files I must upload. Do not invent a file I did not name.
Pro tip: If you cannot say done means, you do not have a GPT. You have a vibe.
Audience and tone card
2/15✨ What it does
ChatGPT extracts a tone card from the three samples you pasted. Paste that card into GPT instructions, then drop any word that was not in a sample.
Write the tone card for a Custom GPT used by [WHO] at [COMPANY]. Samples I own: [PASTE 3 SHORT SAMPLES]. Extract sentence length, words they never use, and point of view. If a sample is missing, write [VERIFY]. Do not invent a brand voice.
Pro tip: Three real emails beat I sound professional. If you have no samples, collect them first.
Refusal line that is useful
3/15✨ What it does
ChatGPT writes an 80-word refusal line that points [WHO] at [SAFE ALTERNATIVE]. Put it in instructions. Test it with one request you want refused.
Write a refusal line for this Custom GPT. It does [JOB]. It must refuse [REFUSE LIST] and instead offer [SAFE ALTERNATIVE]. 80 words. No jailbreak. No fake legal advice.
Pro tip: A GPT without a refusal line will improvise. Write the line before the first share link.
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Instructions that stick
3 promptsBuilder instructions draft
4/15✨ What it does
ChatGPT turns [BRIEF] into GPT Builder instructions with a [VERIFY] rule. Paste them into the builder, then upload only files the brief named.
Turn this brief into GPT Builder instructions: [BRIEF]. Sections: Role, Inputs I will upload, Process, Output format, [VERIFY] rule, Never-do. 400-700 words. Use only the brief. Tag gaps [VERIFY].
Pro tip: Keep it under 700 words. Long novels in instructions get ignored. Short rules get followed.
Knowledge file map
5/15✨ What it does
ChatGPT maps each file you listed to when to use it and what to do if it is silent. Upload those files only. If a file is missing, wait.
I will upload these files: [FILE LIST]. For each file write: when to use it, what not to quote, and what to do if the file is silent. Do not invent a fourth file.
Pro tip: One messy PDF is worse than three labeled ones. Split price list, policy, and examples.
Conversation starters
6/15✨ What it does
ChatGPT writes 4 starters with [BRACKETS] the user must fill. Put them on the GPT profile, then click each one once as a dry run.
Write 4 conversation starters for a Custom GPT that does [JOB] for [WHO]. Each starter includes a placeholder in [BRACKETS] the user must fill. No generic How can I help.
Pro tip: A starter that already contains the answer trains people to be lazy. Leave the brackets empty.
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Repair an existing GPT
3 promptsCut a bloated instruction block
10/15✨ What it does
ChatGPT cuts [PASTE] to about 500 words and lists what it removed. Paste the short version back. If a removed rule mattered, add it as one line.
Here are my current GPT instructions: [PASTE]. Cut them to 500 words. Keep Role, Never-do, Output, [VERIFY]. Drop pep, stories, and duplicate rules. Show a bullet list of what you removed.
Pro tip: If you have two rules that say the same thing, ChatGPT will follow neither consistently.
Fix a GPT that rambles
11/15✨ What it does
ChatGPT adds a hard output contract to your instructions. Save it, then ask the GPT the same question twice and compare length.
Users say this GPT rambles. Instructions: [PASTE]. Add a hard output contract: sections, max length, and a last line that is the next action for the user. Do not add new jobs.
Pro tip: Max length in the instructions beats please be concise, which models treat as decoration.
Hand off to a teammate
12/15✨ What it does
ChatGPT writes a 200-word handoff from [NOTES]. Send it with view access to the GPT. Do not invent a failure you did not write down.
Write a 200-word handoff for [TEAMMATE] who will own Custom GPT [NAME]. Include: job, files, who it is for, known failures, and where the source of truth lives. Use only [NOTES].
Pro tip: If the source of truth is in someone's head, the GPT will rot in a week.
What not to build
3 promptsNo secret tools
13/15✨ What it does
ChatGPT says whether a public API you own can back an Action, and warns you off keys in instructions. Stop if you do not have the API. Do not invent a URL.
I want a Custom GPT that calls [TOOL]. Tell me whether GPT Actions can do that with a public API I own, what I must put in the OpenAPI file, and what I must not put in instructions (keys). If I do not have an API, say so. Do not invent an endpoint.
Pro tip: If the API is imaginary, the GPT will hallucinate the JSON. Build the API first.
Kill a kitchen-sink GPT
14/15✨ What it does
ChatGPT splits [LIST] into at most 3 one-job GPTs. Build the smallest one first. Archive the kitchen-sink GPT.
This GPT tries to do: [LIST]. Split it into at most 3 GPTs with one job each. For each: name, job, files. Use only the list. Do not add a fourth GPT.
Pro tip: One GPT that does sales, legal, and recipes will do all three badly. Split on the job, not the department.
Public vs private
15/15✨ What it does
ChatGPT recommends private, unlisted, or public for [NAME] from [DATA CLASS]. If it says private, leave the share link off. Do not publish PII GPTs.
Should Custom GPT [NAME] be private, unlisted, or public? Job: [JOB]. Data: [DATA CLASS]. Write a 3-row table with a yes/no and one risk. If [DATA CLASS] includes customer PII, recommend private.
Pro tip: Unlisted is not a security control. Anyone with the link is anyone.
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