I used to type out these massive, paragraph-long prompts to Claude every single time I needed something done. Rewriting the same context. Re-explaining my goals. Re-pasting my style preferences. It felt like I was working for the AI instead of the other way around. Then I came across a post from this AI professional that flipped my whole approach upside down.
The original poster made a bold claim: prompting is the worst way to use Claude in 2026. The top 1% of users don’t sit there crafting elaborate prompts. They set up five specific files once, then barely prompt again. I was skeptical at first, but the breakdown the creator shared is genuinely brilliant, and I want to walk you through it.
Why the file-based approach beats prompting
Here’s the core idea the author lays out: every time you prompt, you’re feeding Claude context it should already know. Your identity, your writing voice, your business goals, your hard rules. That’s static information. It shouldn’t live inside a prompt. It should live in files Claude reads automatically before every task.
Once those files exist, your prompts shrink from paragraphs down to a single sentence. The expert behind this system says that’s where the real productivity jump happens.
The 5 files that replace your prompts
- about-me.md (your identity). This file captures who you are, how you write, and how you think. The creator recommends opening Cowork with Opus 4.7 and Adaptive thinking, then asking Claude to interview you with 20 questions using AskUserQuestion. The interview format is the secret here. You don’t have to brainstorm what to include. Claude pulls it out of you.
- anti-ai-writing-style.md (your boundaries). This is the file I was missing for ages. The original poster explains that roughly 80% of this file is what you’re not. Every banned word, every structure you refuse to use, every tone you can’t stand. Think of it as a fence around Claude’s defaults. Without it, you’ll keep getting that generic AI flavor no matter how good your prompt is.
- my-company.md (goals and hard nos). Same Cowork session as the about-me file. The author suggests asking Claude to build this one with 6 to 8 questions on goals and decisions, kept under 1,000 tokens. Cover your yearly targets with actual numbers and your quarterly focus. This way, every output is filtered through your real business priorities, not Claude’s guess at them.
- global-instructions.md (persistent rules). Find this in Settings, then Cowork, then Global Instructions. The creator’s exact paste is: “Before every task, read every file in ABOUT ME/. Never touch OUTPUTS/ or TEMPLATES/ unless I point you to a file. Save deliverables in OUTPUTS/. If unclear, use AskUserQuestion.” Simple, but it forces Claude to behave like a careful assistant instead of a guessing machine.
- The /47 skill (prompt automation). This one is a custom skill you upload via Customize, then Skills. Once it’s loaded, you type /47 followed by a sloppy, half-baked prompt. Claude rewrites it with action verbs and pushes itself to “go beyond the basics” on creative work. The mind behind this calls it the safety net for the days when you’re too tired to prompt properly.
Why this whole system actually works
The secret was always these 5 files behind it. Stop typing context. Start storing it.
When I read that line in the post, it clicked for me. Every clunky prompt I’ve ever written was just a workaround for missing context. If the context lives in files, the prompt becomes a trigger, not a tutorial.
How to actually roll this out without burning a weekend
- Do it in one Cowork session. Build about-me, anti-ai-writing-style, and my-company back-to-back so the context stays warm.
- Use the interview pattern. Don’t write these files yourself. Let Claude ask the questions. You’ll be more honest answering than you will be drafting from scratch.
- Set global instructions before you do anything else. If Claude doesn’t know to read your files, your files don’t matter. Pin the rules first.
- Test with one real task. After setup, throw a short prompt at Claude and see how much it already knows. That moment is the payoff.
- Keep iterating your anti-style file. Every time Claude produces something that sounds off, add the offending word or pattern to your anti-ai-writing-style.md. It gets sharper over time.
What I’d watch out for
One thing the savvy professional behind this system stresses: don’t overload these files. Each one has a job. If you start cramming your company file with personal preferences, the system blurs. Tight, focused files beat long, sprawling ones every single time.
Also, the global instructions file is doing more work than it looks. The line about saving deliverables in OUTPUTS/ and never touching templates is what keeps Claude from going rogue on your existing work. Don’t skip that part.
The takeaway
I was genuinely blown away by how much friction this setup removes. Stop crafting prompts like you’re casting a spell. Build the five files once, let Claude read them before every task, and watch your prompts shrink to a sentence or two.
Check out the full LinkedIn post from this innovator for the complete breakdown and the exact wording behind each step.