Set Up a Memory File for Your AI Assistant
Turn an AI that forgets you overnight into one that remembers. This prompt builds a starter memory file of your decisions, rules, and corrections that you paste in at the start of every session.
I want to give my AI assistant a simple memory so it stops forgetting things between conversations. Help me build a starter "memory file" I can paste in at the start of each session, or save into custom instructions. About me and my business: - What I do: [your role and business, e.g. "I run a bookkeeping practice in the UK"] - How I like to work: [e.g. "plain English, no jargon, direct answers, UK English"] - Things the AI keeps getting wrong: [list any corrections you find yourself repeating] - Shorthand I use: [e.g. "'the latest report' means my monthly client summary"] Build me a single memory file with four short sections: 1. WHO I AM. A few lines on my business and role, so every answer is relevant to me. 2. HOW TO WORK WITH ME. My style and standards, written as rules the AI should follow. 3. DECISIONS AND FACTS. Settled things it should treat as true and not re-litigate. 4. LESSONS AND CORRECTIONS. Mistakes it should not repeat, each written as a one-line rule. Rules for the file: - Keep it tight. Short lines, no padding. A long memory file works worse than a short one. - Use generic labels for people, never personal data. "Customer A", "the supplier", not full names, emails, or addresses. - At the end, give me a one-line instruction I can put at the very top telling the AI to read this file and follow it before answering. Then explain, in three bullets, how I keep this file useful over time without letting it get bloated.
What you get back
- A four-section starter memory file (who you are, how to work with you, decisions and facts, lessons and corrections) you can paste in or save as custom instructions
- A one-line instruction to put at the top so the assistant reads and follows the file before it answers
- Three rules for keeping the file useful over time without letting it bloat and fall over
How to use it
Fill in the bracketed sections with your own details and the corrections you keep repeating. Run it, then save the output as a single document. Paste it at the start of a session, or drop it into the custom instructions of ChatGPT or Claude. Each time you catch yourself fixing the same thing twice, add a one-line rule to the lessons section. Keep it short: a tight file beats a giant one.
A note on data
Keep personal data out of the file. A first name for context is fine; a full name, email, and address sitting in a memory file is a standing record you do not need. Use generic labels and strip anything the assistant does not need to be useful.