Token Audit Checklist: Find Where You're Wasting 50 Percent

Run this on any prompt you use regularly: SYSTEM PROMPT AUDIT
[ ] Does my system prompt repeat anything that's already in CLAUDE.md? Remove it.
[ ] Do I explain WHO Claude is for more than 2 sentences? Trim to 1.
[ ] Am I giving examples when the instruction is clear without them? Remove examples.
[ ] Do I have "Please" or polite filler? Delete all of it.
[ ] Am I telling Claude to "think carefully" or "take your time"? Remove, it's noise. MESSAGE AUDIT
[ ] Do I re-explain the context on every message? Move it to CLAUDE.md or a file.
[ ] Do I ask Claude to confirm it understood before answering? Remove, just answer.
[ ] Do I ask for things I then ignore? (e.g., "include 3 options" then use 1), stop asking.
[ ] Am I including background Claude doesn't need for this specific task? Cut it.
[ ] Is my prompt more than 150 words for a task that takes Claude 3 seconds? Trim it. QUICK MATH
Count words in your prompt. Estimate what 50% of that is. Try the shorter version.
If output quality holds, you're done. If it drops, add back only what was missing.

I'm going to give you a prompt. Your job is to compress it, remove everything that doesn't change the output quality. Do not change the intent. Do not remove constraints that matter. Just cut the fat. For each thing you remove, tell me why it was unnecessary.
For each thing you keep, tell me why it's load-bearing. Target: 40-60% word reduction without output quality loss. Here's the prompt:
[paste your prompt]