Skip to content

Chain of Thought Prompting

"The saddest aspect of life right now is that science gathers knowledge faster than society gathers wisdom." Isaac Asimov

You've learned how to craft a detailed, single prompt. Now, let's unlock another powerful technique: Chain of Thought (CoT) prompting. This is where you transform the AI from a simple responder into a true problem-solving partner, especially for complex tasks like detailed research, brainstorming intricate ideas, or validating multi-faceted concepts.

The Power of Step-by-Step Thinking

Imagine you're solving a complex problem or planning a big project. You don't just jump to the final answer, do you? You break it down into smaller, manageable steps: first, I'll do this; then, based on that result, I'll do this next; and so on.

Chain of Thought (CoT) prompting is essentially guiding the AI to do the same thing. Instead of asking it for a final, comprehensive answer directly, you instruct it to show its work, break down its reasoning, or complete a task in a sequence of logical, explicit steps. This is incredibly powerful for several reasons:

  1. Improved Accuracy: When Cortex has to "think" step-by-step, it's less likely to make errors or "hallucinate" (1). It's like asking a student to show their calculations on a test – it helps catch mistakes in the process, not just the final result.
  2. Handles Complexity: For intricate problems that involve multiple sub-tasks or logical dependencies, CoT allows Cortex to tackle each part systematically, building towards a coherent and correct solution.
  3. Increased Transparency & Trust: You can see how Cortex arrived at its answer, which builds trust and helps you understand its logic (or pinpoint exactly where it might have gone astray). This is invaluable for validating ideas, understanding complex research summaries, or debugging automated processes.
  4. Better Control: You maintain more granular control over Cortex's process, allowing you to intervene, correct, or refine at each stage if needed.
  1. 🌀 generate factually incorrect but plausible-sounding information

Tip

Think of each step in your Chain of Thought as a checkpoint. A checkpoint in your prompting process is a chance to stop, review, and make sure you're on the right track before moving on.

Why are checkpoints so important?

  • Catch Mistakes Early: It's much easier to fix a small error in Step 1 than to realize the entire final output is wrong because of a mistake made early on. By reviewing at each checkpoint, you can correct the AI's understanding or output before it affects the next steps.
  • Stay in Control: Checkpoints give you the power to guide the AI. If Cortex (the AI) is heading in the wrong direction, you can gently steer it back on course with a clarifying instruction at the next step.
  • Build Confidence: Seeing the AI successfully complete each small step gives you confidence that the final result will be accurate and what you expect.

How to use checkpoints:

  1. Give the AI one clear task at a time.
  2. Review the output of that task. Does it make sense? Is it accurate? Is it what you asked for?
  3. If it's good, move to the next step.
  4. If it's not quite right, give a corrective instruction in your next prompt. For example, you could say, "That's a good start, but for the next step, please focus more on..." or "In the list you just gave me, please remove the incorrect items before we move on."

Connecting Chain of Thought to First Principles

Chain of Thought prompting is the natural extension of First Principles Thinking. Once you've used First Principles to identify the core components of your request (your goal, context, constraints, and desired format), you can use Chain of Thought to guide the AI through each of those components in a logical sequence.

Think of it this way:

  • First Principles is about what you need to ask.
  • Chain of Thought is about how you ask it.

By combining these two techniques, you can create prompts that are not only well-structured and clear, but also guide the AI to produce the best possible output.

Practical Example: Creating a Plant Care Guide with Chain of Thought

Let's illustrate CoT with a real-world problem Alex faces: creating a comprehensive, easy-to-follow care guide for cherry tomatoes for beginners. This task requires gathering information, organizing it logically, and presenting it clearly – a perfect fit for CoT.

If Alex just asks Cortex, "Give me a care guide for cherry tomatoes," (1) the result might be too generic or miss key details for beginners. By breaking it down, Alex ensures higher accuracy and relevance.

  1. 🧠 You should try this prompt

Here’s how Alex would approach this using a Chain of Thought:

Step 1: Initial Information Gathering and Extraction

The very first step is for Alex to get Cortex to simply understand and pull out the raw, essential care information, without trying to format it yet.

Alex asks Cortex (Step 1)

I need to create a care guide for cherry tomatoes for beginner gardeners. Your first task is to identify all essential care requirements for cherry tomatoes, from planting to harvest. Focus on key aspects like sunlight, watering, soil, fertilization, common pests/diseases, and harvesting. Present this information as a raw, unformatted list of facts. Do not organize or format it yet.

Why is this the first step? This prompt isolates the crucial task of accurate information extraction. It prevents Cortex from getting sidetracked by organization or formatting, ensuring it correctly understands and extracts the raw data first.

Cortex's Parsed Output (Step 1 of CoT - Example)

  • Cherry tomatoes need at least 6-8 hours of direct sunlight daily.
  • They prefer well-draining soil with a pH between 6.0 and 6.8.
  • Water deeply and consistently, especially during fruiting. Avoid overhead watering.
  • Fertilize every 2-4 weeks with a balanced fertilizer once fruits appear.
  • Common pests include aphids, hornworms, and whiteflies.
  • Common diseases include blight and powdery mildew.
  • Support plants with stakes or cages.
  • Harvest when fruits are fully colored and slightly soft.
  • Pinch off suckers for better yield.

Step 2: Information Organization and Simplification

Now that Alex has the raw data, the next logical step is to organize it into a beginner-friendly structure and simplify any complex terms.

Alex asks Cortex (Step 2)

Using the list of cherry tomato care facts you just provided, organize this information into a logical, step-by-step guide for beginners. Use simple language, avoiding jargon. Structure it with clear headings for each stage of growth (e.g., "Planting," "Watering," "Feeding," "Pest Control," "Harvesting"). Do not add any introductory or concluding remarks yet, just the organized guide.

Why this prompt is the next step?

  • Builds on previous output: It explicitly refers to the "list of cherry tomato care facts you just provided," ensuring continuity and using Cortex's most recent understanding of the information.
  • Specific Task: The only task here is organization and simplification. This isolates the most critical part of making the guide accessible.
  • Clear Constraints: "Logical, step-by-step," "simple language, avoiding jargon," and "clear headings for each stage of growth" provide clear rules for the organization.
  • Prevents over-processing: By saying "Do not add any introductory or concluding remarks yet," Alex keeps the focus solely on the core content.

Cortex's Organized Output (Step 2 of CoT - Example)

Planting Your Cherry Tomatoes - Choose a sunny spot that gets at least 6-8 hours of direct sunlight. - Use well-draining soil. - Support your plant with a stake or cage right away.

Watering Your Cherry Tomatoes - Water the soil deeply and regularly, especially when fruits are growing. - Try to water the base of the plant, not the leaves, to prevent diseases.

Feeding Your Cherry Tomatoes - Once your plant starts to grow fruit, give it plant food every 2-4 weeks.

Protecting Your Cherry Tomatoes - Keep an eye out for small bugs like aphids or tiny white flies. - Watch for spots on leaves, which could be diseases. - Pinch off small shoots that grow between the main stem and branches to help the plant focus energy on fruit.

Harvesting Your Cherry Tomatoes - Pick your cherry tomatoes when they are fully colored and feel a little soft when gently squeezed.

Step 3: Final Formatting and Introduction

With the information organized and simplified, Alex is ready for the final touch: adding a friendly introduction and formatting the entire guide for the workshop handout.

Alex asks Cortex (Step 3)

Using the organized cherry tomato care guide you just provided, add a friendly and encouraging introduction (2-3 sentences) for beginner gardeners. Format the entire guide as a Markdown document suitable for a workshop handout.

Requirements for Markdown Formatting:

  • The main title should be a large heading (H1, e.g., # Cherry Tomato Care Guide).
  • Use sub-headings (H3, e.g., ### Planting Your Cherry Tomatoes) for each section.
  • Use bullet points (-) for all instructions.
  • Ensure the language remains simple and encouraging throughout.

Why this prompt is the final step:

  • Integration: It brings together the results from the previous two steps (the organized and simplified content).
  • Specific Format: It clearly dictates the Markdown structure, ensuring consistency for the handout.
  • Final Review: It implicitly asks Cortex to confirm all previous constraints (simple language, encouraging tone) are maintained in the final output.

Cortex's Final Output (Step 3 of CoT - Example):

# Your Beginner's Guide to Happy Cherry Tomatoes!

Welcome, new gardeners! Growing your own cherry tomatoes is incredibly rewarding, and with a little care, you'll be enjoying fresh, juicy fruit in no time. This guide will walk you through the simple steps to keep your plants thriving.

## Planting Your Cherry Tomatoes
- Choose a sunny spot that gets at least 6-8 hours of direct sunlight.
- Use well-draining soil.
- Support your plant with a stake or cage right away.

## Watering Your Cherry Tomatoes
- Water the soil deeply and regularly, especially when fruits are growing.
- Try to water the base of the plant, not the leaves, to prevent diseases.

## Feeding Your Cherry Tomatoes
- Once your plant starts to grow fruit, give it plant food every 2-4 weeks.

## Protecting Your Cherry Tomatoes
- Keep an eye out for small bugs like aphids or tiny white flies.
- Watch for spots on leaves, which could be diseases.
- Pinch off small shoots that grow between the main stem and branches to help the plant focus energy on fruit.

## Harvesting Your Cherry Tomatoes
- Pick your cherry tomatoes when they are fully colored and feel a little soft when gently squeezed.

Happy gardening!

This multi-step Chain of Thought approach transforms a potentially messy, error-prone task into a streamlined, reliable process. Alex can apply this same structured thinking to complex research summaries, detailed brainstorming, or multi-part idea validation processes.