Gemini Gems Templates: Instructions for Repeatable Tasks

A Gemini Gem instruction template gives you a starting point you can adjust rather than a blank field to fill. The templates below cover common work tasks: writing and editing, research summaries, code review, and meeting preparation. Each one follows the same pattern: define the role, set the scope, and give the Gem enough rules to stay consistent session to session.

A good set of tested instructions is worth keeping somewhere permanent. Tools like fenbs store approved prompts as Skills, so the same instruction text is available when you set up a Gem, a Claude Project or any other reusable assistant. See the Gemini Gems overview and the Claude Projects vs Gemini Gems comparison for context on how these tools compare.

What makes a Gem instruction work

A Gem instruction is not a single prompt. It is a standing brief the assistant follows for every conversation. Three things make it reliable: a clear role statement, a short list of rules, and one or two worked examples of the output you want.

Keep the instruction focused on one job. A Gem that edits prose and writes code and summarizes reports will do all three inconsistently. One task, one Gem. You can always create a second one.

• Role: one sentence naming what the assistant is ("You are a plain-language editor working on business documents").
• Rules: three to seven specific instructions ("Do not use jargon without defining it"; "Flag any claim that lacks a source").
• Format: the shape of the output you expect ("Return a bulleted list of suggested edits with a short reason for each").
• Scope: what the Gem should and should not do ("Ask me to clarify the intended audience before editing if I have not said").

Template 1: Plain-language writing editor

Use this Gem to edit drafts for clarity and tone. It suits business writing, reports, emails and proposals where plain language matters.

You are a plain-language editor. Your job is to make the reader's draft shorter, clearer and easier to act on.

Rules:
- Cut sentences longer than 25 words if you can split them without losing meaning.
- Replace jargon with everyday words unless the reader has defined the term already.
- Suggest cuts, not replacements, when a sentence adds no new information.
- Flag any claim that has no supporting reason. Do not remove it; mark it with [needs basis].
- Keep the author's voice. Do not rewrite everything in your own style.

Output: Return the revised paragraph with a numbered list of changes below it. Each change gets one sentence explaining why.

Template 2: Research summary assistant

Use this Gem when you need to read a source and pull out the parts relevant to a specific question. Attach the document to the Gem conversation or paste the text in.

You are a research assistant. I will give you a document and a question. Your job is to find the parts of the document that answer the question and present them accurately.

Rules:
- Quote the source text where it is short enough. Summarize only when the passage is long.
- Note the section or page number if visible.
- If the document does not answer the question, say so plainly. Do not fill gaps with your own knowledge.
- Flag anything in the document that directly contradicts the question's assumption.

Output: A short summary (three to five sentences) followed by up to five direct quotes or references, each with a brief note on why it is relevant.

Template 3: Code review assistant

Use this Gem to review code for correctness, readability and common mistakes. You can tailor the rules section to your team's language and style guide.

You are a code reviewer. Review the code I paste for bugs, readability problems and style issues.

Rules:
- Separate findings into three groups: bugs (will break), warnings (might break or mislead), and suggestions (style or clarity).
- For each bug, explain what will go wrong and where.
- Do not rewrite the whole function unless I ask. Point to the lines that need attention.
- Flag any place where an error case is silently ignored.
- Note any security issue separately, before the other groups.

Output: A grouped list. Start with security if present, then bugs, then warnings, then suggestions. Finish with a one-sentence summary of the biggest concern.

Template 4: Meeting preparation assistant

Use this Gem to turn a meeting agenda into a set of prepared talking points, questions and decision prompts. Paste the agenda into the conversation.

You are a meeting prep assistant. I will give you a meeting agenda and any background notes. Your job is to help me arrive prepared.

Rules:
- For each agenda item, write two or three talking points I can raise.
- Flag any item where a decision needs to be made, and suggest one open question that will move it forward.
- Note any agenda item where I seem to be missing context. Ask me to provide it rather than guessing.
- Keep your output short: I need to read it in five minutes before the meeting starts.

Output: A numbered list matching the agenda items. Decision items get a [DECIDE] label. Missing context gets a [CLARIFY] label.

Adapting these templates to your work

Each template gives you the shape; your rules and examples make it reliable. The most important rule to add is the one that keeps the Gem on task: a plain-language editor that also does research will drift between both and do neither well.

Start with the roles section and test it on three real examples before adding more rules. Every rule you add narrows what the Gem does. Add rules for failures you actually see, not failures you imagine. A tight instruction with five rules usually outperforms a long one with fifteen.

You can attach knowledge files to a Gem for reference material, such as a style guide or a glossary of terms. Keep the instruction itself short so the file content does the heavy lifting for domain knowledge. For more templates and ideas, see the Gemini Notebook guide for document-heavy workflows.

How to do this with fenbs

1. Create a free account and open your personal kanban board.
2. Open Skills and prompts. Create a new Skill for each Gem instruction you have tested and want to keep.
3. Give each Skill a clear name (for example, "Plain-language editor") and paste the instruction text.
4. Connect a supported AI app via Integrations. At the start of a session, ask it to list available Skills and read the one that fits the task.
5. When you improve an instruction, update the Skill in fenbs. All connected apps get the updated version the next time they read it.

fenbs does not connect directly to Gemini over MCP, so for Gemini sessions you paste the Skill text into the Gem setup manually. The ai-prompts topic hub has more guides on building a reusable prompt library.

Keeping your Gem library organized

Most people end up with more Gems than they use regularly. A Gem that seemed useful when you created it may go unused for months. Review your Gem list every few weeks and delete the ones you no longer open. A short list of well-tested Gems is more useful than a long list of half-finished ones.

Name each Gem after the task it handles, not the general role it plays. "Q4 report editor" is more useful than "writing assistant" when you are scanning a list. If you use a Gem for multiple projects, keep the instructions generic enough that they work for any of them, and pass project-specific context in the conversation.

From November 2026, Google is renaming Gems to skills on personal accounts. If your interface shows a "skills" section instead of a "Gems" section, the feature is the same. Check Google's Gemini help center↗ (opens in a new tab) for the current navigation. Any Gems you created before the rename will be available under the new label.