Insights

1. AI is not a replacement for critical thinking.

• If you have poor critical thinking skills, AI will amplify the problem.

• Do not trust agent output as authoritative just because it is fluent.

• Confident prose triggers a trust bias in humans that AI agents often don’t deserve.

2. A good problem statement is more than half the solution.

• Before you prompt, make sure you can articulate what problem you're solving and why. The agent will happily build the wrong thing with great confidence.

• Iterate. Expect multiple rounds. Your first prompt is a rough draft, not a final specification.

• You can refine your prompt by examining the way the agent interprets it.

• A better prompt in a fresh chat may get better results.

3. Think carefully about how to verify the correctness of the results you get.

• A clean build alone is negligent.

• Your results are only as good as your automated tests.

• Ask the agent to add tests as it adds capabilities. See item 1.

4. Manage scope

• Keep the agent's working scope small and well-defined. Large, sprawling tasks produce large, sprawling mistakes.

• Decompose work into tight, reviewable chunks rather than asking for everything at once.

5. Exploit the agent’s speed

• Ask for multiple options

• Ask for clarification

• Ask it to explain tradeoffs

• Review proposals carefully, as you might read a junior developer’s pull request. See item 1.

6. Know when to stop

• If the agent has failed to solve the problem after several attempts with clear guidance, pause.

• You may need to start from a partial solution you’ve developed yourself, or rethink the approach.

• Smaller bites of the problem may help.

• Consider solving the problem yourself - you will learn a great deal because of the extra mental effort.

7. Review the output carefully

• If you don’t understand the output, don’t put your name on it. See item 1.

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