I've mostly been a front-end-focused developer. Designing and developing front-end applications, with the odd API fetch function (NextJS blurring the lines).

Recently, I was working on a project where I needed to use MongoDB and Auth0 for user profiles. I had a vague idea of where to start, but I needed more direction.

I opted to use ChatGPT to give me the general structure of what the Node application would look like. It surprised me! It curated the exact information I needed to start developing. What would've taken days, turned into a few hours. I was able to develop a working user profile database with authentication at light speed.

There were some quirks here and there and some API was not up-to-date. Nonetheless, it was able to curate info from various sources and documentation. The information was super context-aware. It tailored the information to match the specs of my app! Giving me code suggestions, folder structure, and everything I could ask for in a hyper-relevant manner.

“A sword is only as good as the man who wields it.”

Again, this is far from perfect. It's a super-charged assistant and your job is to guide it. If prompted well, you can learn new skills and technologies in minutes.

For example, if I wanted to learn Python, I would ask:

"As a proficient JavaScript developer, give me an outline of key concepts or guidelines for learning Python as efficiently as possible".

I'm giving ChatGPT some context of my knowledge, in hopes that it'll give me a framework that is familiar to me. Depending on the responses, I will then proceed to prompt and learn from ChatGPT until I've reached my initial goal.

Our job as users are to engineer these prompts to give us the most relevant responses. The only prerequisites for effective prompting are the ability to ask the right questions and to provide enough context. Having general knowledge of a particular field is a multiplier, but is not needed if you're a skilled prompter. The better prompter you are, the better your work will be. Make sure you find ways to use it in your work today, so you can make more time for yourself.

Midjourney prompt: superhero Static Shock running through cyberpunk city, lightning fast, flashing lights, rainy, 8k --ar 7:4 --niji 5