When AI Gets Weird: Use prompt engineering to get smarter, clearer answers

Ever wonder why AI sometimes gives you brilliant answers, and other times total nonsense? In this episode, Damien breaks down the misunderstood concept of prompt engineering, showing how it’s really just good communication dressed in tech jargon. Whether you're brand new to AI or already using it daily, this episode will help you ask smarter questions and get better answers—without the fluff.

Damien walks through seven practical techniques pulled from Google’s 70-page guide on working with large language models, translating them into plain English. You’ll learn how to guide AI with zero-shot, one-shot, and few-shot prompting, assign it a role for more consistent tone, and give it context that actually makes its responses relevant. Plus, he dives into powerful methods like step-back prompting, chain-of-thought reasoning, and self-consistency, so you can train your AI to think before it speaks.

If you’ve ever stared at an AI response thinking, “What were you thinking?”, this episode is your fix. You'll leave with the tools to make AI genuinely useful for budgeting, brainstorming, or just getting unstuck. Hit play and learn how to stop getting weird answers and start making AI work on easy mode.

Chapters

00:00 Understanding Prompt Engineering

01:23 Ignore the Tech Bro Jargon

02:04 Shot Prompting for Examples

03:36 Role Prompting for Better Context

05:48 Context Prompting to Set the Scene

06:44 Step-Back Prompting for Thoughtful Responses

07:35 Chain of Thought Prompting for Transparency

08:37 Positive Prompting for Clarity

10:08 Self-Consistency Prompting for Reliable Answers

12:32 Conclusion and Challenge

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Full Example Prompt:

You are a financial coach who helps people categorize their spending to align with their goals. You’re helping a college student build their first budget. They work part-time, have student loans, and are trying to save for a study abroad trip. 

Classify each expense as either 'Need', 'Want', or 'Savings/Investment'.

• Example 1: 'Grocery store purchase' → Need

• Example 2: 'Roth IRA contribution' → Savings/Investment

• Example 3: 'Movie theater tickets' → Want

Before we start, define what qualifies as a 'Need,' a 'Want,' or 'Savings/Investment' when helping someone build a monthly budget. Now, using that reasoning, classify the following expenses. 

Only label an item as a Need if it’s essential for health, shelter, transportation, or basic living expenses. Label items as Wants if they’re discretionary or lifestyle-related. Label items as Savings/Investment if they contribute to long-term financial goals.

Think step-by-step about the purpose of the expense, how often it's used, and whether it's essential or optional:

• Ramen noodles

• Netflix subscription

• $50 monthly toward study abroad fund

• Used bicycle for commuting