Empower

Everything you need to remember about Claude, in one place.

The 5-Part System Prompt (for Projects)

Every strong Project system prompt covers:

  1. Role. "You are a {role} assistant at Empower."
  2. Context. Who you are, what the work looks like.
  3. Task priorities. 2–4 things Claude will most often do.
  4. Style. Tone, format, length.
  5. Constraints. What Claude should NOT do.

Full guide: Lesson 07 · System Prompts →

The 4 Levers That Fix Most Prompts

When output misses, check all four:

LeverExample
Role"I'm an account manager at Empower."
Audience"For a commercial client new to our service."
Purpose"I need a one-page leave-behind after a site visit."
Format"Three short paragraphs, plain language."

8 Prompts That Earn Their Keep

1. Summarize in exactly 3 bullets. Plain language.
   {PASTE}

2. Edit for clarity. Do not change meaning or tone.
   {PASTE}

3. Compare {A} and {B}. Table of pros/cons, then your recommendation and the main reason.

4. What am I missing? I'm planning to {plan}. Risks, blind spots, or considerations?

5. Extract every action item. For each: owner, task, deadline. If unstated, "no deadline given."
   {PASTE}

6. Play devil's advocate. 5 strongest arguments against doing this. Honest, not polite.

7. What do I need to know before {action}? Top 5–7 things, be specific.

8. Write a professional follow-up email after a meeting with {person}. We discussed {X}. Next step: {who does what when}. 3–4 sentences.

Full library of 20: Lesson 15 · Prompt Library →

Mobile Shortcuts

  • Voice — tap the mic. Dictate. Faster than thumb-typing by 3–4×.
  • Photo — tap camera/library. Claude reads text, labels, diagrams.
  • Share sheet — from any app (email, PDF, browser), tap Share → Claude. No copy-paste.

7 Pitfalls to Avoid

  1. One mistake ≠ unreliable. Review like you would an intern's work.
  2. Vague one-line prompts → vague output. Add role/audience/purpose/format.
  3. Re-explaining context every chat. Use a Project.
  4. Expecting Claude to see your email/files. It can't, unless you paste or connect.
  5. Expecting it to read your mind. Over-explain early on.
  6. Burying the ask in a long background paragraph. Lead with it.
  7. Sending Claude's draft without reading it. Never.

Full list with fixes: Lesson 19 · Common Pitfalls →

Habit Anchors

  • Daily: every email longer than 3 sentences — draft with Claude first.
  • Weekly: every meeting — paste rough notes into "Meeting Notes Cleaner" Project, get clean summary before the next calendar item.
  • Monthly: 30-min review. What time did Claude save us? What didn't work?

Data & Privacy (the short version)

  • Claude only sees what's in the chat window. No background access to your systems.
  • Team and Enterprise content is not used to train models by default.
  • Your workspace is isolated from other companies.
  • Don't paste: SSNs, passwords, privileged legal docs, HIPAA data (unless Enterprise+HIPAA).

Full detail: Lesson 14 · Data & Privacy →

When Claude Feels Stuck

  • "Too long" / "too short" / "more direct" — just say it in the next message.
  • "You missed X" — Claude adjusts without restarting.
  • Still wrong after 2 tries — your prompt is underspecified. Add one more sentence of context.