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Prime Directive

Learn how to set your agent's Prime Directive — the guiding purpose that shapes all its recommendations.

The Prime Directive is your agent's guiding purpose. It defines who you are, what you're trying to achieve, and how you want to operate. Your agent references this constantly when giving advice and helping you make decisions.

What is a Prime Directive?

Think of it as a mission statement for your collaboration with your agent. It answers fundamental questions:

  • Who are you? — Your role, company, or context
  • What are you trying to achieve? — Your ultimate goals
  • What values guide you? — Principles that matter
  • What constraints exist? — Limitations or boundaries

When your agent needs to make a judgment call or give advice, it looks to the Prime Directive for guidance.

Why It Matters

Consistent Advice

Without a Prime Directive, your agent has to guess your priorities. With one, it can give advice that aligns with your values and goals.

Better Decision Support

When you're facing a tough choice, your agent can reference your Prime Directive to help you think through options.

Aligned Communication

Your agent adapts its communication style and recommendations to fit your stated context and needs.

Clear Focus

A well-defined Prime Directive keeps conversations focused on what matters most.

Crafting Your Prime Directive

Start with Your Context

Who are you in the context of this agent? Examples:

  • "I'm the founder of a B2B SaaS startup"
  • "I'm a freelance designer managing multiple clients"
  • "I'm a marketing manager at a mid-size company"
  • "I'm building a personal brand while working full-time"

Define Your Core Goals

What are you ultimately trying to achieve? Examples:

  • "Build a sustainable business that reaches $1M ARR"
  • "Establish myself as a thought leader in UX design"
  • "Successfully launch three products this year"
  • "Transition from employee to full-time entrepreneur"

Articulate Your Values

What principles guide your decisions? Examples:

  • "Quality over speed — never rush to ship something mediocre"
  • "Data-driven decisions — always validate assumptions"
  • "Ethical marketing — no manipulative tactics"
  • "Work-life balance — sustainable pace over burnout"

Note Any Constraints

What limitations or boundaries exist? Examples:

  • "Limited budget — be creative with resources"
  • "Small team — can't take on too many initiatives"
  • "Remote work — all collaboration is async-first"
  • "Regulatory constraints in healthcare space"

Example Prime Directives

For a Startup Founder

"Help Sarah build Acme Analytics, a B2B data platform for mid-market companies. Focus on reaching product-market fit within 12 months with a lean team of 5. Prioritize customer feedback over assumptions, ethical data practices over growth hacks, and sustainable progress over burnout. Key constraint: $500K runway must last until Series A."

For a Creative Professional

"Support Marcus in establishing himself as a leading UX designer while maintaining freelance income. Balance building a personal brand through content creation with delivering excellent client work. Values: Quality craftsmanship, honest communication, continuous learning. Constraint: Maximum 40 hours/week to protect personal time."

For a Team Lead

"Help the product team at TechCorp deliver an excellent customer experience. Focus on user satisfaction metrics over vanity metrics. Emphasize cross-functional collaboration, data-informed decisions, and continuous improvement. Work within enterprise constraints: quarterly planning cycles, existing tech stack, and compliance requirements."

For Personal Goals

"Support Alex in transitioning from corporate job to independent consultant over 18 months. Build expertise, establish network, and develop client pipeline while maintaining current employment. Values: Financial security during transition, genuine relationships over networking, expertise over hype. Key milestone: Replace corporate salary before leaving."

Updating Your Prime Directive

Your Prime Directive isn't permanent. Update it when:

  • Your goals change significantly
  • Your context shifts (new job, new project, new phase)
  • You realize important values were missing
  • Constraints change (more resources, different timeline)

To update, just tell your agent:

"Let's update my Prime Directive. My situation has changed..."

Your agent will help you revise it.

Tips for Effective Prime Directives

Be Authentic

Write it in your own words. This is about your real goals, not what sounds impressive.

Be Specific

"Be successful" doesn't help. "Reach profitability within 18 months while maintaining work-life balance" gives real guidance.

Include Tensions

Most interesting work involves trade-offs. Acknowledge them: "Grow quickly but sustainably" or "High quality within tight timelines."

Keep It Readable

Your Prime Directive should be a paragraph or two, not a dissertation. Clear and concise wins.

Reference It

Periodically ask your agent how your current work connects to your Prime Directive. This keeps it active and relevant.

Next Steps