Lesson 4 of 8 · Retrieval Basics: Make AI Use Your Own Documents
In this lesson. Answer only from retrieved text and show sources.
What you will learn
- Only these snippets
- Citation ids
- I do not know
Walkthrough
You will prompt: use only these snippets, quote ids, say you do not know. Citations are how users trust the app. This is the contract.
Work through the ideas in order. After each point, pause and connect it to a task you already do — a document, a workflow, or a feature you own. The goal of Retrieval Basics: Make AI Use Your Own Documents is usable skill, not a pile of notes.
If something is unclear, rewrite it in your own words before you continue. Teaching the step back to yourself is the fastest way to see gaps.
Practice
Write the generate prompt and produce one answered and one refused example.
Keep the first attempt small. A finished example you can reuse beats a perfect plan you never run.
Check your understanding
- Can you explain the goal of this lesson in one sentence to a teammate?
- Where would you apply “Only these snippets” in your own work this week?
- What would you change on a second pass of the practice?
Next. Continue to the following lesson when the practice has a real artifact, even a rough one.