1. Understanding Custom Instructions
Custom Instructions have two parts: 'What would you like ChatGPT to know about you?' (context) and 'How would you like ChatGPT to respond?' (behavior). Both persist across all chats.
2. Effective Context Setting
In the first field, include: your profession/role, technical level, industry context, common tasks you need help with, and any constraints (word limits, formats, etc.).
3. Behavior Instructions
In the second field, specify: response format (concise vs detailed), tone (professional vs casual), whether to ask clarifying questions, preferred frameworks or methods, and what to avoid.
Wrap-up
Well-crafted custom instructions dramatically improve ChatGPT's usefulness. Treat them as onboarding a new assistant—the more context, the better the results.