Everyday ways to shape AI with care, clarity, and conscience. (*Not the Microsoft product – poor thing.)
Before You Prompt
▢ Am I asking clearly—or just quickly?
▢ Do I know what kind of answer I want—depth, summary, perspective?
▢ Is this topic emotionally loaded or socially sensitive?
While You Read
▢ Does this output feel plausible—or genuinely thoughtful?
▢ What voices, values, or perspectives might be missing?
▢ Would I push back if this came from a person?
Before You Accept or Share
▢ Have I verified key claims or data points elsewhere?
▢ Could this be misread, misused, or taken out of context?
▢ Does sharing this reflect what I believe in—or just what’s convenient?
In How You Use AI
▢ Am I aware of what personal data I’m sharing?
▢ Do I know who made this tool—and what their incentives are?
▢ Am I choosing tools that respect privacy, transparency, and fairness?
As a Civic Participant
▢ Have I helped someone else understand AI better today?
▢ Have I asked questions of my tools—not just to them, but about them?
▢ Have I used my input as a vote for clarity, nuance, and human dignity?
✨ Bonus Reflection:
“If this prompt were teaching the AI how to treat future users…
would I still write it this way?”
Want more ways to get AI working with you?
Explore the full AI Prompt Tools collection — each toolkit builds on this checklist with ready-to-use prompts and strategies to help you diagnose unclear inputs, fix tone mismatches, prevent hallucinations, and get results that sound like you.
