How to Train Your AI to Think (and Work) Like You

If you’re using AI tools like ChatGPT, you’ve probably already seen glimpses of how helpful they can be. A quick answer here, a brainstorm there. But if you’re honest, a lot of the time the responses feel… off. Too formal. Too vague. Not really you.

That’s because most people interact with AI like a vending machine. They type something in, hope for the best, and if it’s not right, they try again with a slightly different prompt.

But there’s a better way.

What if, instead of treating it like a tool, you started treating it like a teammate? Someone who understands how you think, how you work, and how you like to get things done.

That’s what this guide is about. I’ll show you the exact process I use to train my AI, not with code or data, but with real conversations that build context and trust.

If you do this well, you won’t just get better answers. You’ll get answers that sound like they came from you.

The Core Technique: “Understand Me First”

The best way to start training your AI is surprisingly simple: get it to ask you questions.

Before you start asking for help, use this prompt to lay the foundation:

Prompt:

I want you to deeply understand how I think, work, and communicate. Please ask me questions, one at a time, to learn my style, preferences, priorities, and goals. Keep asking until you feel confident you can engage with me fully, with context and alignment. Then confirm your understanding with a short summary before we move forward.

This does a few really important things:

• It slows the AI down and gets it to focus on depth, not speed
• It helps the AI align with your unique style, instead of defaulting to a generic tone
• It creates context that sticks throughout the session so your future prompts work better

Even if you’re not using a version of AI with long-term memory, doing this up front makes a huge difference. You’re laying the groundwork for better responses later, the kind that feel more personal, less robotic.

It’s a bit like setting expectations with someone new on your team. The clearer you are at the start, the less back-and-forth you’ll need down the line.

What It Looks Like in Practice

Once you’ve shared that prompt, the AI should start asking you some thoughtful questions. Things like:

• How would you describe your writing style?
• When you’re solving a problem, do you prefer detailed breakdowns or quick action steps?
• Do you like responses to be short and punchy, or more detailed and exploratory?
• When you’re making decisions, do you lean more on instinct, data, or a mix of both?

There are no right or wrong answers here. Just be honest and answer like you would if a new teammate asked you the same things.

The more open you are, the better the AI can adapt to the way you naturally think and work. It’s not about feeding it facts. It’s about letting it get to know you.

Before and After Training

To show you how much of a difference this makes, here’s a simple example from my own experience.

I asked the AI to help me write an email apologising for a delayed project. Here’s what I got back:

Dear Client,

I apologize for the delay in the project. We are working diligently to resolve the issue and appreciate your patience.

Technically, that’s fine. But it’s stiff, formal, and sounds like it came from a corporate handbook. It doesn’t match how I actually speak, and definitely not how I’d write to someone I’ve built a relationship with. I ended up rewriting the whole thing.

Now compare that to what I got after going through the training process we just talked about. I asked the exact same thing:

Hey [Client Name],

Just wanted to give you a quick heads-up. We’ve hit a bit of a snag on [Project Name], and it’s causing a small delay. We’re working on getting it sorted and I’ll keep you in the loop as we go. Really appreciate your patience.

That version sounds like me. It’s casual, transparent, and still gets the message across. I didn’t have to rewrite anything.

That’s the difference a bit of training makes. Less editing, more output that actually fits your voice.

One little tip: after your initial training session, you can also prompt the AI to “match my tone and style” in future conversations. It’ll help keep things consistent and save you even more time.

How to Keep Improving Over Time

Training your AI isn’t something you do once and forget about. It’s more like building a working relationship. The more you interact, the more it learns.

Every now and then, it’s worth checking in. Try asking something like, “Based on how we’ve been working together, how would you describe my style?” It’s a good way to see if it’s still aligned with how you think. And if it’s off, just correct it with a bit of context. Not just what’s wrong, but what you would’ve preferred instead.

If you start a new project or shift into a different kind of work, you can always go back and repeat the “Understand Me First” process. It helps the AI reset and stay relevant to whatever you’re focused on right now.

The more you do this, the more your AI starts to feel like a real part of how you work. Not just a tool you use, but something that actually gets you.

Final Thoughts

This whole process isn’t about making AI faster. It’s about making it better. More useful. More personal. When you take the time to train it properly, you stop getting generic replies and start getting responses that actually sound like you.

It’s a small shift that can make a big difference. And once you experience what it’s like to work with an AI that really understands you, you won’t want to go back.