Context engineering playbook

How I shape context to keep models grounded and outputs stable.

Draft

Topics

Context shapingPrompt designRAGFailure modes

Context is the interface. This playbook covers how I structure inputs so outputs stay stable across real-world tasks.

Outline

Context is a product, not a blob
Structuring inputs for predictability
Guardrails and retrieval discipline
Playbook for troubleshooting drift

Context shaping

Clarify intent and constraints early.
Use strict schemas for predictable output.
Separate instructions from raw data.

Retrieval discipline

Targeted top-k with metadata filters.
Chunking strategies for semantic recall.
Refresh rules to avoid stale context.

Guardrails

Validation gates for structured output.
Refusal patterns for missing data.
Tool boundaries to prevent drift.

Debugging drift

Prompt diffing and replay tests.
Example-based error analysis.
A/B testing for stability.

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