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From Meh to Magic: How to Turn Vague Prompts into Clear Instructions for Microsoft Copilot
Because “make it better” isn’t a real prompt.
🤷♀️ Why Some Copilot Responses Feel... Meh
You open Microsoft Word, Outlook, or Teams.
You type something into Copilot—maybe
“summarise this”or
“write a draft.”
And what comes back?
✅Technically correct
❌Not really useful
The problem? Vague prompts.
They’re like asking a colleague to “do the thing.” You’ll get something—but probably not what you wanted.
🔑 The Fix: Be Clear, Not Clever
Copilot isn’t guessing. It’s following instructions.
And the more context and clarity you give it, the better your results.
That’s where the PromptIngredients™ framework comes in.
It’s the backbone of a great prompt—and it’s as simple as four parts:
- 🎯 Goal – What do you want Copilot to do?
- 📍 Context – Who is it for? What’s the situation?
- 📂 Source – Where should it pull info from?
- 📝 Expectations – What should the output look like?
🛠️ Real Before & After Prompts
Let’s take a few common Copilot scenarios and show what happens when you move from meh to magic.
✉️ Example: The Email Follow-Up
Vague prompt:
“Write a follow-up email.”
Better prompt:
“Write a friendly follow-up email to [Client] based on yesterday’s meeting.
Mention the timeline for delivery and confirm we’ll send next steps by Friday.”
📊 Example: The Data Summary
Vague prompt:
“Summarise this spreadsheet.”
Better prompt:
“Summarise Q4 sales trends by region using the Excel file attached.
Include one key insight per region, formatted as bullet points.”
💬 Example: The Meeting Catch-Up
Vague prompt:
“What did I miss?”
Better prompt:
“Summarise all Teams messages and emails from today related to [Project Name].
Highlight tasks I’ve been assigned or tagged in.”
💡 The Big Idea: Prompting Is a Conversation
You don’t need to write a perfect prompt the first time.
Start simple. Then clarify. Then iterate.
It’s not about sounding smart—it’s about being specific.
Try this structure:
- What do I want? (Goal)
- Why does it matter? (Context)
- What should Copilot look at? (Source)
- What should the result look like? (Expectations)
