What this technique does
To ask ChatGPT to think step by step is to tell it not to lead with the conclusion but to write out the calculating and the comparing as it goes. When the AI produces an answer in one shot it skips the intermediate arithmetic and drops in a plausible number; make it write the working and real arithmetic goes in that spot instead.
What you get on top is reasoning a person can review. You can see which step misread a condition, so instead of throwing the whole wrong answer out you can ask for that one line to be fixed.
Good example / bad example
Bad
3 people, 2 nights at 120 a night, 80 for petrol, food 30 each. how much per person?Good
Please work out the cost per person for the trip below. Before you reach a conclusion, write out the subtotal for each item one at a time, and give the per-person amount at the end.
3 people, 2 nights of accommodation at 120 per night, 80 for petrol, and food at 30 per person.The bad example drops out a single number, and since you cannot tell whether food was counted per person or in total, you end up doing the sum again anyway. The good one leaves a line per item — 240 for accommodation, 80 for petrol — so you can put your finger straight on whatever went wrong.
How to write it
- Before concluding, write out your reasoning step by step, then give the final answer at the end.
- Quote the sentences your judgement rests on first, and write the conclusion after that.
- Build a table comparing the candidates against each criterion first, then pick one on the basis of that table.
Watch out
Attach it to something that is over in one pass, like a translation or a spelling fix, and the answer stays the same while the explanation gets longer. Better left off for short tasks.
Working that reads smoothly does not mean the answer is right. A wrong conclusion can sit at the end of plausible-looking steps, so check the numbers and dates yourself.
Unfamiliar terms? See Aha AI: chain-of-thought
Turn on Think step by step in the builder to add this sentence: “Before concluding, write out your reasoning step by step, then give the final answer at the end.” Open the builder →