🏴‍☠️ 3-Level Prompt Ladder

This Prompt Fixes How You Learn Anything

Author

Captain YAR
January 17, 2026 • Estimated Reading Time: 7 minutes

I tried to learn something new last week and I did the classic move: opened a “quick explanation” and promised myself I would focus. The first page talked to me like I was five. The next one assumed I was writing a PhD thesis.

I bounced between “too simple” and “too much” until my brain quietly quit. Then I saw one tiny prompt trick that made the whole topic click. It felt like someone finally handed me a ladder instead of a wall.

Most technical explanations are broken because they force you to choose between oversimplified baby talk or impenetrable academic jargon.

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The “Ladder” Approach to Learning
Instead of asking for one “perfect” explanation, you ask for three, in order: like I’m 5, then 15, then a working professional. Each pass builds on the last, so the hard terms arrive after you already understand the idea.

One tip: tell the AI what you plan to do with the knowledge (teach it, use it, debug it). Same ladder, sharper examples.

Why This Method Works

Bridging the Knowledge Gap
Most people get stuck in the awkward middle ground, where explanations are either vague or packed with vocabulary you have not earned yet. The three levels build a bridge across that gap, step by step.

A small upgrade: after each level, ask for one sentence that connects it to the next level. Also ask it to keep the same metaphor across all three levels.

From “Dog Treats” to “Backpropagation”
In the original Reddit example, “machine learning” starts as “teaching a dog tricks with treats” at Level 1. Level 2 reframes it as humans noticing patterns, like recognizing faces. Level 3 introduces minimizing loss functions and adjusting weights, and the math finally feels like a formal version of the same idea.

The Ultimate “BS Detector”
Run the ladder prompt on something you think you already understand. If the ELI5 analogy feels wrong, you probably memorized definitions without owning the core logic. That is a fast, honest way to spot gaps before they bite you at work.

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Prompt of the Day
Here is the exact structure the redditor shared:

“Explain [complex topic] like I’m 5. Then explain it again like I’m 15. Then explain it like I’m a professional who needs to use this knowledge.”

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If the answers drift, tell it to reuse the same analogy and define new terms once.
After the professional version, ask for a two-minute self-test or a tiny practice task..

Can this prompt help if I already understand the topic?
Yes. It is an effective way to audit your own knowledge. Try running the prompt on a concept you think you have mastered. If the Level 1 (ELI5) explanation seems foreign or difficult to grasp, it often indicates that you have been memorizing technical definitions rather than truly understanding the foundational logic behind the concept.

This is a fantastic way to tackle Wikipedia rabbit holes or difficult industry concepts. Check out the link to the original post to see the community discussion!

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