The Boring Answer Detector
AI (and tired humans) default to the safe, average, textbook answer — technically correct and utterly forgettable. This audits your plan or draft for exactly those lines: the generic advice, the predictable framing, the thing anyone would say. Then it pushes each toward something specific, surprising, or actually yours. It's a bland-o-meter with a fix attached.
What This Skill Produces
- The boring-line flags — the specific parts that are generic, predictable, or textbook
- Why each is forgettable — what makes it the average answer (it applies to anyone; it's advice everyone's heard; it says nothing false but nothing new)
- A sharper version — a more specific, concrete, or non-obvious alternative for each
- The keepers — the parts that are already sharp, so you don't over-edit
Required Inputs
Ask for these if not provided:
- The content — the plan, draft, pitch, or idea to scan (paste it)
- The goal — what it's for and who it's for (specificity depends on audience)
- How bold — sharpen-but-safe, or make-it-provocative
- Anything fixed — parts that must stay as-is
Framework: Flag The Average, Sharpen It
- Spot the generic tells. Advice that applies to literally anyone, framings everyone uses, hedged non-statements, and "best-practice" boilerplate are the boring parts.
- Name why it's flat. For each, say what makes it forgettable — usually it's true but says nothing specific to this situation.
- Sharpen with specificity. The cure for generic is concrete: a real detail, a number, a named tradeoff, a strong stance, or a non-obvious angle.
- Push one or two toward surprise. Where it fits, replace a safe line with a genuinely non-obvious take.
- Leave the good parts alone. Flag what's already sharp so the edit doesn't flatten it or over-spice everything.
Output Format
Scanning: [the content] · for [audience]
| Boring line |
Why it's flat |
Sharper version |
| "[generic line]" |
[applies to anyone / cliché / hedged] |
"[specific, concrete, or surprising rewrite]" |
Already sharp (keep): [the strong parts].
Overall: [how generic it is + the one change with the most impact].
Quality Checks
Anti-Patterns
- Calling everything boring including the good parts.
- "Make it punchier" with no specific rewrite.
- Swapping one cliché for another.
- Over-spicing until it's gimmicky instead of sharp.
Example Trigger Phrases
- "Is my plan too generic? Sharpen it."
- "This draft feels bland — flag the boring bits."
- "Why does my pitch sound like everyone else's?"
- "Spot the clichés in this and fix them."
- "Make this less textbook and more specific."
1---2name: the-boring-answer-detector3description: Scan a plan, draft, or idea for the generic, textbook, everyone-would-say-that lines — and push each toward something sharper and more specific. Use when asked is this too generic, make this less boring, why does my plan feel bland, or spot the clichés in my thinking. Produces a line-by-line flag of the mediocre and predictable parts, why each is forgettable, and a sharper, more specific, or more surprising alternative for each — so the output stops sounding like the average of the internet.4---5
6# The Boring Answer Detector
7
8AI (and tired humans) default to the safe, average, textbook answer — technically correct and utterly forgettable. This audits your plan or draft for exactly those lines: the generic advice, the predictable framing, the thing anyone would say. Then it pushes each toward something specific, surprising, or actually yours. It's a bland-o-meter with a fix attached.
9
10## What This Skill Produces
11
12- **The boring-line flags** — the specific parts that are generic, predictable, or textbook
13- **Why each is forgettable** — what makes it the average answer (it applies to anyone; it's advice everyone's heard; it says nothing false but nothing new)
14- **A sharper version** — a more specific, concrete, or non-obvious alternative for each
15- **The keepers** — the parts that are already sharp, so you don't over-edit
16
17## Required Inputs
18
19Ask for these if not provided:
20- **The content** — the plan, draft, pitch, or idea to scan (paste it)
21- **The goal** — what it's for and who it's for (specificity depends on audience)
22- **How bold** — sharpen-but-safe, or make-it-provocative
23- **Anything fixed** — parts that must stay as-is
24
25## Framework: Flag The Average, Sharpen It
26
271. **Spot the generic tells.** Advice that applies to literally anyone, framings everyone uses, hedged non-statements, and "best-practice" boilerplate are the boring parts.
282. **Name why it's flat.** For each, say what makes it forgettable — usually it's true but says nothing specific to *this* situation.
293. **Sharpen with specificity.** The cure for generic is concrete: a real detail, a number, a named tradeoff, a strong stance, or a non-obvious angle.
304. **Push one or two toward surprise.** Where it fits, replace a safe line with a genuinely non-obvious take.
315. **Leave the good parts alone.** Flag what's already sharp so the edit doesn't flatten it or over-spice everything.
32
33## Output Format
34
35### Scanning: [the content] · for [audience]
36
37| Boring line | Why it's flat | Sharper version |
38|---|---|---|
39| "[generic line]" | [applies to anyone / cliché / hedged] | "[specific, concrete, or surprising rewrite]" |
40
41**Already sharp (keep):** [the strong parts].
42**Overall:** [how generic it is + the one change with the most impact].
43
44## Quality Checks
45- [ ] Flags the genuinely generic/predictable lines, specifically
46- [ ] Explains why each is forgettable
47- [ ] Offers a concrete, sharper alternative for each
48- [ ] Pushes at least one toward the non-obvious
49- [ ] Identifies what's already good so it isn't over-edited
50
51## Anti-Patterns
52- **Calling everything boring** including the good parts.
53- **"Make it punchier"** with no specific rewrite.
54- **Swapping one cliché for another.**
55- **Over-spicing** until it's gimmicky instead of sharp.
56
57## Example Trigger Phrases
58- "Is my plan too generic? Sharpen it."
59- "This draft feels bland — flag the boring bits."
60- "Why does my pitch sound like everyone else's?"
61- "Spot the clichés in this and fix them."
62- "Make this less textbook and more specific."
Mohit Aggarwal