The quality of a project depends on the quality of its instructions, just as the quality of an output depends on the quality of the prompt. Your project instructions are a standing brief: everything the tool needs to know about this project that it should not have to be told in every individual conversation.
For a client project, the essential elements are: the client’s names and how they prefer to be addressed, their travel style and priorities as you understand them from the consultation, any specific requests or non-negotiables, the destination and dates, what stage the process is at, and the types of output you are most likely to need. If there are sensitivities, include them: a surprise trip, a client who is cautious about budget, a specific dietary or accessibility requirement that should be reflected in every recommendation.
For a destination project: the city or region, the type of traveller you most commonly send there, and any standing preferences about the suppliers, ground handlers or properties you work with. If you have strong views on which hotels in London work best for corporate clients versus leisure travellers, or which ground handler in East Africa you trust for complex logistics, put that in the instructions. The tool should know your perspective and your experience, not just the destination’s geography.
For a task-specific project: the type of output, the format standards, the tone, the audience, and any standing constraints. If your social content project should never produce posts longer than a certain length, or should always avoid specific language, put it in the instructions once and it applies to every conversation.
The general principle is this: if you find yourself repeating the same contextual information at the start of a new conversation inside a project, that information should be in the project instructions instead. The project instructions exist to eliminate repeated briefing. Use them fully.
