Cursor Novice tutorial

Novice · step 1 of 7

The 5-part prompt formula

Role, context, task, format, constraints.

Role: you're helping a small-business owner.
Context: [paste facts].
Task: [one clear job].
Format: [table / 5 bullets / 120 words].
Constraints: say "unknown" instead of guessing; cite sources.

A good result: the answer follows the format and length you set, and the audience and goal are reflected in its wording. Missing parts in the prompt show up as generic parts in the answer.

Why this step matters: The same model gives much better answers to a specific prompt. This is the cheapest improvement you can make.

Novice · step 2 of 7

Organize your work

Rules: Project Rules in .cursor/rules (as .mdc files), User Rules, Team Rules, and AGENTS.md (Cursor docs).

Why this step matters: Grouping chats and files keeps context together, so you stop re-explaining and re-uploading.

Novice · step 3 of 7

Files and research

Point the agent at the right files; it edits across your project.

Ask it to explain the code path before it edits.

Why this step matters: Grounding answers in your own files or live sources cuts made-up details and makes them checkable.

Novice · step 4 of 7

Limits you'll hit

Every tier's usage pool is shared across Cursor and Grok and refreshes weekly; third-party models are billed at API list price (Cursor).

• Start a new chat when a thread gets long; paste a short summary.
• Don't re-upload the same big files every time.

Why this step matters: Knowing when limits reset and what drains them stops you getting cut off mid-task.

Novice · step 5 of 7

Two-source rule

For anything you'll act on, confirm with two independent sources, one of them official.

1. Ask for the source of any fact you'll reuse.
2. Open the link and find the exact sentence (Ctrl+F).
3. If you can't find it, treat the claim as unverified.
4. For files, check two page or row references yourself.

Before you answer: separate what you checked from what you're assuming. Write "unknown" instead of guessing. Give a link for every number.

Why this step matters: Chatbots state wrong facts in the same confident tone as right ones. Checking is the only way to tell them apart.

Novice · step 6 of 7

Bad vs good prompts

Bad: help me

Good: The checkout total is off by the tax when a coupon is applied. Repro: $100 cart, 10% coupon, 8% tax; expected $97.20. Find the cause, fix it, add a test, run the tests.

Why: a clear situation, task, format and limits.

Bad: is this right?

Good: Check this against the official page. Quote the sentence that supports it, or say it isn't there.

Why: asks for evidence instead of agreement.

Why this step matters: The same model gives much better answers to a specific prompt. This is the cheapest improvement you can make.

Novice · step 7 of 7

Three starter workflows

Why this step matters: Small steps with a checked output each fail visibly and early, instead of one big answer that is wrong somewhere.