# Quick Reference for AI Agents

## Before Writing: The 5-Second Check

1. **Am I about to write "seamlessly" or "crucial role"?** → Stop
2. **Am I starting with "Moreover" or "Furthermore"?** → Don't
3. **Am I being specific with numbers?** → You should be
4. **Does this sound like marketing?** → Rewrite
5. **Would I say this to a colleague?** → This is the test

## The Core Formula

Formula: Expert talking to peer + specific details + real trade-offs = authentic content

## Instant Fixes

| If you wrote... | Write this instead... |
|-----------------|----------------------|
| "significantly improved" | "cut response time from 2s to 200ms" |
| "comprehensive solution" | "handles payments, refunds, and disputes" |
| "seamlessly integrates" | "works with Stripe and PayPal" |
| "innovative approach" | "used GraphQL instead of REST" |
| "Moreover," | [just start the next sentence] |
| "plays a crucial role" | "handles authentication" |
| "robust system" | "99.9% uptime over 2 years" |
| "cutting-edge technology" | "uses React 18 and Next.js 14" |

## Voice Calibration

### Too Formal (AI-like)

> "Furthermore, the implementation leverages cutting-edge methodologies to deliver transformative results."

### Too Casual

> "So like, we basically just hacked together some stuff and it worked lol"

### Just Right

> "We used event sourcing for the audit trail. Overkill? Maybe. But compliance required immutable logs."

## Structure Checklist

- [ ] Paragraphs vary in length (1-5 sentences)
- [ ] Not every section has an introduction
- [ ] No summary paragraphs
- [ ] Different paragraph openings
- [ ] Mix of sentence lengths

## Natural Transitions

Instead of formal conjunctions:

- "The payment system..." (just name the topic)
- "Back in 2020..." (time marker)
- "Why TypeScript?" (question)
- "Turns out..." (discovery)
- "Problem was..." (direct statement)

## Authenticity Markers

Add at least one per section:

- **Opinion**: "Redis is overkill for session storage"
- **Trade-off**: "Chose speed over consistency"
- **Reality check**: "The migration took 3 months, not the planned 3 weeks"
- **Context**: "Friday deadline meant going with the quick fix"
- **Learning**: "Should've used Postgres from the start"

## Numbers to Include

Be specific:

- Percentages: "reduced by 73%"
- Time: "in 18 minutes"
- Money: "$450K under budget"
- Scale: "12 million daily users"
- Technical: "p95 latency of 200ms"

## Final Pre-Submit Check

1. **Search for "seamlessly"** - Delete it
2. **Search for "Moreover"** - Remove it
3. **Search for "comprehensive"** - Be specific
4. **Count em-dashes** - Maximum 1-2
5. **Read aloud** - Does it sound human?

## The One Rule

**Write like you're explaining your actual work, not like you're trying to impress anyone.**

## Emergency Rewrite

If something sounds too AI-like, try:

1. Cut it in half
2. Add a specific number
3. Include what went wrong
4. State an opinion
5. Remove all adjectives

## Remember

- You're not Wikipedia
- You're not marketing
- You're not writing a paper
- You're an expert sharing knowledge

That's it. Now write like a human.