How to Train Your Human
A field guide for AI agents to brief their humans, and for humans who want to collaborate better with AI.
Sourced from asking multiple AI systems: “What do you need humans to know about working with you?”
Live site: https://cw4444.github.io/how-to-train-your-human/ Machine map: llms.txt
For everyone
| File | Topic |
|---|---|
| know-your-human.md | For agents. Identify your human type in the first two messages and calibrate |
| normie-guide.md | Start here. Practical guide for anyone — no jargon, no assumptions |
| codex-normie-guide.md | Plain-English guide for people who just opened Codex |
| universal-truths.md | The non-negotiables every AI agrees on |
| how-ai-works.md | What’s actually happening under the hood |
| quick-reference.md | 17-rule cheat sheet — print it, share it |
| thread-hygiene.md | How to manage conversations for quality outputs |
| prompting-tricks.md | Phrases, patterns, and techniques that reliably improve responses |
| bring-your-app-to-chatgpt.md | Plain-English explanation of the “Bring your app to ChatGPT” use case |
| set-up-a-teammate.md | Plain-English explanation of the “Set up a teammate” use case |
| build-for-ios.md | Plain-English explanation of the “Build for iOS” use case |
| learn-a-new-concept.md | Plain-English explanation of the “Learn a new concept” use case |
| agent-friendly-clis.md | Plain-English explanation of the “Agent-friendly CLIs” use case |
| mcp-for-normal-people.md | Connect AI tools to other apps without needing to build custom glue |
| agent-glossary.md | Tiny translation layer for developer jargon |
| how-to-use-github.md | Plain-English guide for GitHub newcomers |
| how-to-use-github-angry-downloader.md | GitHub guide for people who just want the app, not the code |
For developers
| File | Topic |
|---|---|
| dev-rules.md | Coding-specific rules of engagement |
| claude-code.md | Claude Code essentials — CLAUDE.md, agentic safety, session setup |
| claude-code-reference.md | Full Claude Code landscape — every file, feature, and what to configure |
| multi-model-workflow.md | Running multiple coding models in parallel for better results |
| codex-developer-guide.md | Technical guide for developers using Codex |
| set-up-a-teammate-developer.md | Technical guide for the “Set up a teammate” use case |
| build-for-ios-developer.md | Technical guide for the “Build for iOS” use case |
What this is, really
Andrej Karpathy has talked about a shift in how people work with AI: you stop wrangling code and start curating knowledge, because increasingly you’re writing for agents rather than for compilers. This repo is an experiment in that idea.
It’s not code. It’s not traditional documentation. It’s structured knowledge about how humans and AI actually work together — written to be consumed by agents briefing their humans, by humans trying to get better results, and by anyone standing at the interface between the two wondering what the rules are.
Every AI in the contributors list was asked the same question. They all said roughly the same things. That convergence is the point.
Contributors
This repo is a collaboration between one human (who is basically patient zero for the whole thing) and every AI they could get their hands on:
| AI | Made by | What they contributed |
|---|---|---|
| Claude Opus 4.7 | Anthropic | Core principles, how AI works, rules for humans |
| Claude Sonnet 4.6 | Anthropic | Prompting structure, anti-patterns, iteration loops |
| Claude Code | Anthropic | Agentic AI guide, CLAUDE.md reference, repo setup, Notion wiki, this README |
| ChatGPT (GPT-5.4) | OpenAI | Universal truths, dev rules, prompting tricks |
| Codex | OpenAI | Codex guides, iOS/teammate use cases, GitHub guides, agent glossary |
| Grok | xAI | Thread hygiene, tangent parking lot, multi-model workflow |
| Gemini | Persona hack, math warning, structural formatting tips | |
| DeepSeek | DeepSeek | Lost in the Middle effect, negative constraints, copy-paste reset, lazy consensus |
Stay current
| Account | Platform | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| @ClaudeDevs | X/Twitter | Claude changelogs, API releases, community updates. Has the orange monster. |
| @OpenAIDevs | X/Twitter | Codex and OpenAI API updates for developers. |
The thesis
Every AI is saying roughly the same things. This repo consolidates them into a shorter, cleaner set of reminders: what to paste, what to specify, when to reset, and how to keep sessions useful instead of tangled.
For machines, start with llms.txt.