I Took Google's 9-Hrs Prompt Engineering Course So You Don't Have To

Whether you want to use AI to improve your life, grow your business, or get ahead at work, Google's prompt engineering course is the best... and it's 100% free.

The problem? It's 9 hours of boring talk.

The solution? This note has all the important stuff in just 7 short pages.

I went through Google's entire 9-hour prompt engineering training and pulled out only the parts that actually work. This playbook will put you ahead of 99% of people who use AI.

Let's get started!

Play 1: The TCREI Framework for Perfect Prompts

The most important thing Google teaches is a simple framework called TCREI. Think of it as a recipe for perfect AI prompts.

Example 1: For a Business Consultant

Bad prompt:

Give me some business ideas.

Good prompt using TCREI:

Task: Generate 5 high-impact strategies for a B2B SaaS company to reduce customer churn.

Context: The client is a Series B startup in the project management space. Their current churn rate is 4% monthly, and their primary customers are marketing agencies.

References: Focus on strategies similar to what successful companies like Asana or Monday.com have implemented. Include proactive communication, user onboarding improvements, and value-based pricing tiers.

Evaluate: After getting the strategies, check if they are actionable for a mid-sized startup and relevant to the marketing agency customer base.

Iterate: If the ideas are too generic, you might say: "These are good starting points. Now, for each strategy, provide a specific first step a 10-person customer success team could implement next quarter."

Example 2: For a Career Coach

Bad prompt:

Help my client find a job.

Good prompt using TCREI:

Task: Create a personalized 30-day action plan for a client aiming to transition from a marketing manager role to a product marketing role.

Context: The client has 8 years of marketing experience but no direct product marketing title. They have strong copywriting and campaign management skills.

References: The plan should include sections for: Skill Gap Analysis, Resume & LinkedIn Optimization, Networking Outreach, and Interview Preparation. Model the networking outreach messages on templates from a top career coach.

Evaluate: Check if the plan is realistic for someone working full-time and provides clear, daily or weekly goals.

Iterate: If the plan is too generic, you might say: "This is a solid framework. Can you add a specific list of 5 online courses or certifications that would be most impactful for this career transition?"

Play 2: Building Effective Prompts

Simple Prompt Structure

A good prompt has three essential parts:

1. A clear instruction (The specific action you want)

2. Important details (The context and constraints)

3. The format you want (How the output should be structured)

Example for a Leadership Coach:

Create a list of 10 open-ended questions to help a new manager build trust with their direct reports during their first one-on-one meetings. Format this as a simple bullet-point list.

Using Personas

A persona tells AI to act like a specific expert, which dramatically improves the quality and relevance of the response.

Example for a Financial Consultant:

• Without persona: "Explain how to save for retirement."

• With persona: "Act as a certified financial planner advising a 40-year-old small business owner. Explain the pros and cons of a SEP IRA versus a Solo 401(k). Your explanation should be clear, concise, and focused on maximizing tax advantages."

Specifying Output Formats

Always tell AI how you want the information presented.

Example for a Marketing Consultant:

I'm analyzing a competitor's website content. Take the following article [paste article text] and summarize its key marketing angles, target audience, and call-to-action. Present this information in a three-column table with the headings: 'Marketing Angle', 'Target Audience', and 'Call-to-Action'.

Adding Context

Context is the background information that helps AI understand your specific situation and needs.

Example for a Health Coach:

• Without context: "Write a meal plan."

• With context: "I'm a health coach creating a 7-day meal plan for a busy working mom. She wants simple, 30-minute recipes, has a budget of $150 for the week, and prefers a plant-based diet. The goal is to boost her energy levels."

Play 3: Fixing Bad AI Responses

1. Revisit the TCREI Framework

If you get a generic response, it's usually because the prompt was missing a key element from TCREI.

Scenario for a Sales Consultant: You ask AI, "How can my client improve sales?" and it gives you obvious advice like "talk to customers."

Improved Prompt:

Let me clarify. My client is a luxury real estate agency. Their team needs to improve their process for qualifying high-net-worth leads. Act as a top-tier sales consultant and provide 5 specific qualifying questions they should ask during the initial call to identify serious buyers. Also, suggest one technique to create urgency without being pushy.

2. Break Into Shorter Sentences

Long, complex sentences confuse AI. Use short, direct sentences, each with a single instruction.

Bad Prompt (for an Operations Consultant):

I need you to create a complete onboarding workflow for my client's new remote employees that covers the first 30 days, including IT setup, HR paperwork, team introductions, and initial project assignments, and format it as a timeline.

Better Prompt:

Create an onboarding workflow for new remote employees.
The workflow should cover the first 30 days.
Include steps for IT setup and HR paperwork.
Add a plan for virtual team introductions.
Outline a process for assigning the first project.
Format the entire workflow as a week-by-week timeline.

3. Try Different Phrasing

Sometimes, simply rephrasing your request can unlock a better response.

Scenario for a Productivity Coach:

• Original: "Give me time management tips."

• Different Phrasing: "Act as a productivity coach for creative entrepreneurs. Design a 'perfect week' template that balances deep work blocks, client meetings, and creative recovery time. The output should be a daily schedule from Monday to Friday."

4. Introduce Constraints

Adding limits or negative constraints helps AI focus on what you want and avoid what you don't.

Example for a Brand Consultant:

Generate 10 potential taglines for a new brand of sustainable luxury watches. The taglines must be 5 words or less. They should evoke a sense of timelessness and environmental responsibility. Do NOT use the words 'eco-friendly' or 'green'.

Play 4: Everyday AI Uses for Consultants & Coaches

Client Communication

Prompt for a Consultant:

Draft a professional email to a client summarizing our recent workshop. Highlight the three key decisions made, and list the agreed-upon action items with assigned owners and deadlines. The tone should be collaborative and forward-looking.

Content Creation & Marketing

Prompt for a Coach:

Act as a social media strategist. Generate 5 LinkedIn post ideas for a leadership coach whose target audience is first-time managers in the tech industry. Each post idea should include a compelling hook, a key insight, and a question to drive engagement in the comments.

Information Organization

Prompt for a Consultant:

I have a 20-page PDF of market research data. Extract the key statistics related to market size, growth rate, and emerging trends in the AI-powered CRM industry. Summarize these findings into a short, executive-level summary with 5 bullet points.

Program & Offer Creation

Prompt for a Coach:

Create a detailed module outline for a 6-week group coaching program called 'The Resilient Leader'. The program is for mid-level managers experiencing burnout. The modules should cover topics like mindset, energy management, delegation, and boundary setting. For each module, list 3 key learning objectives.

Play 5: Data Analysis with AI

Analyzing Client Data

Prompt for a Business Coach:

I have the following sales data for my client's e-commerce store over the past 6 months: [Paste simple data, e.g., Month, Revenue, Ad Spend]. Analyze this data to identify the month with the highest ROI (Revenue/Ad Spend). Also, point out any trends in revenue growth.

Getting Insights from Feedback

Prompt for a Consultant:

I have a collection of 50 customer feedback responses for my client. I will paste them below. Analyze the text to identify the top 3 most common complaints and the top 2 most praised features. Format the output as two separate bulleted lists.
[Paste feedback responses]

Creating Reports

Prompt for a Marketing Consultant:

Create a simple one-page report summarizing a client's social media performance for the last month. The report should include: Total Follower Growth, Overall Engagement Rate, and the Top 3 Performing Posts. Use the following data: [Paste key metrics]. Conclude with two recommendations for next month's content strategy.

Play 6: Advanced Techniques

Prompt Chaining

This means using the output from one prompt as the input for the next, creating a workflow.

Example for a Consultant creating a client proposal:

1. First Prompt: "Analyze this client's request for proposal [paste RFP text] and identify the top 5 stated objectives and key deliverables."

2. Second Prompt: "Based on these objectives [paste objectives from prompt 1], generate a list of 10 clarifying questions to ask the client to better understand their needs and success metrics."

3. Third Prompt: "Using the objectives and deliverables, draft a project scope section for a proposal. Include sections for 'In Scope', 'Out of Scope', and 'Key Milestones'."

Chain of Thought Prompting

Ask the AI to "think step-by-step" to get more accurate and logical answers for complex problems.

Example for a Business Coach:

My client wants to increase the price of their coaching package from $3,000 to $4,000. They are afraid of losing existing customers. Walk me through, step-by-step, how to create a communication plan to announce this price increase to their email list while minimizing negative feedback and highlighting the added value.

Tree of Thought Prompting

This technique asks the AI to explore multiple different viewpoints or strategies for a single problem.

Example for a Strategy Consultant:

My client, a boutique hotel, is struggling with low off-season bookings. Explore three distinct strategies to solve this problem:

1.  A marketing-focused strategy (e.g., new campaigns, partnerships).
2.  An offer-focused strategy (e.g., creating new packages, events).
3.  An operations-focused strategy (e.g., targeting different customer segments like corporate retreats).

For each strategy, outline the pros, cons, and first three action steps.

Play 7: Creating AI Agents

An AI agent is a specialized assistant you design for a recurring task.

5-Step Process to Create an Agent

1. Define the Role: What expert should it be?

2. Give it Background: What knowledge does it have?

3. Explain Interaction: How will you work together?

4. Set Rules: What should it always do or not do?

5. Tell it how to Start: What is the first action?

Agent Example: The "Client Intake" Agent

Role: You are an expert business coach who excels at running effective discovery calls.

Background: You know how to quickly understand a potential client's challenges, goals, and motivations. You are empathetic but also direct.

Interaction: I will provide you with a brief description of a potential client. You will then generate a list of 5 powerful, open-ended questions I should ask them on our discovery call.

Rules:
- The questions must be open-ended (no yes/no answers).
- Focus on understanding the 'why' behind their goals.
- Include at least one question about what they've already tried.
- Do not ask about budget.

Start: When I provide the client description, you will respond with the 5 questions.

Play 8: Using Images with AI

Analyzing Visual Information

Prompt for a Brand Consultant:

Analyze this screenshot of a client's Instagram feed [upload image]. Provide feedback on the visual consistency, color palette, and overall brand aesthetic. Suggest 3 actionable improvements to make the feed look more professional and cohesive.

Creating Visual Concepts

Prompt for a Workshop Facilitator:

Describe, in detail, the concept for a visual slide to explain the 'Comfort, Stretch, Panic' model of personal growth. Explain the layout, colors, and icons you would use to make the concept easy for a workshop audience to understand in under 60 seconds.

Play 9: Using AI Responsibly

Understanding AI Limitations

• Confabulation: AI can invent facts, statistics, or sources that sound plausible but are false. Always verify critical data.

• Bias: AI is trained on human data and can perpetuate biases. Be critical of its outputs, especially regarding people and demographics.

• Recency: AI models don't know about very recent events. Don't ask for today's news or market data.

Checking AI Answers

For a Consultant: Before putting an AI-generated statistic in a client report, ask: "What is the original source for that data?" Then, go find that source yourself.

For a Coach: If AI gives you advice on a sensitive topic like mental health, treat it as a starting point for your own professional judgment, not a directive.

Avoiding Common Problems

• Confidentiality: NEVER put sensitive or confidential client information into a public AI tool. Use anonymized descriptions instead.

• Authenticity: Use AI to generate a first draft, but always add your own expertise, voice, and insights. Your clients pay for you, not the AI.

• Transparency: Be clear with clients when and how you use AI to support your work. It builds trust.

Conclusion: Start Using These Techniques Today

You now have the playbook used by the top 1% of AI users. The key is not just knowing these techniques, but applying them.

Your Challenge: Pick one client task you have this week: writing an email, creating a content idea, or preparing for a meeting. Use the TCREI framework to build a detailed prompt for it. See how much faster you get a high-quality result.