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How I Tamed Cursor AI to Write Perfect Code

Every Time.
5 min read · Mar 11, 2025

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AI coding tools like Cursor can be a blessing or a curse. When they work, it’s pure
magic, but when they don’t, it’s like letting a drunk toddler loose on your codebase.
I’ve been there — staring at a mess of AI-generated code, wondering if I’d have been
better off coding by hand. After too many late-night debugging disasters, I’ve finally
cracked the code (pun intended) on making Cursor deliver exactly what I need,
every time. Here’s my battle-tested playbook, straight from the trenches, to help you
avoid the chaos and harness Cursor’s power.
Why Cursor Breaks Your Code (And How to Fix It)
Here’s the deal: Cursor isn’t a mind reader. If you jump straight into coding without a
plan, you’re begging it to guess what you want — and it’s terrible at guessing. I
learned this the hard way when I asked Cursor to build a task management app and
got a Frankenstein’s monster of mismatched frameworks. The fix? It’s all about
planning — 70% planning, 30% execution, to be exact. Let’s dive in.
Step 1: Plan Like Your Life Depends on It
I used to be the guy who’d fire up Cursor and type “build me an app” without a
second thought. Big mistake. Now, I treat planning as the foundation of my
workflow, and it’s a game-changer.
My Secret Weapon: ChatGPT Voice
I know, it sounds weird to use another AI to tame Cursor, but stick with me. I use
ChatGPT Voice to talk through my ideas before coding. There’s something about
hearing myself ramble that forces me to clarify what I want. For example, for a task
management app, I might say:

“Hey, I’m building an app to manage tasks. Users should add, edit, and delete tasks.
I need a homepage to list tasks, a form to add new ones, and a page to edit existing
tasks.”

ChatGPT Voice helps me sketch an outline, which I scribble on a napkin (yes, I’m
old-school like that):
 Task App Plan
- Big Idea: Simple task management
- Must-Haves:
- Add, edit, delete tasks
- See all tasks
- Flow:
- Homepage: Task list
- Add Task Page: Form
- Task Detail Page: Edit

This napkin sketch is my North Star. It keeps me — and Cursor — on track.

Step 2: Document Everything
Here’s a lesson I learned the hard way: AI code is only as good as the context you
give it. Skip documentation, and Cursor will make dumb decisions — like the time it
built me a backend API with zero error handling. Ugh.
My Go-To Tool: CodeGuide
I use a tool called CodeGuide to generate two key docs:

1. Product Requirements Document (PRD): The “what” — features, user stories,

edge cases.
2. Tech Stack: The “how” — frameworks, libraries, tools.

For my task app, here’s a snippet of my PRD:

PRD: TaskMaster
- Goal: Make tasks dead simple
- User Stories:
- I want to add a task to track my work
- I want to edit a task to fix typos
- I want to delete a task when it’s done
- Tech Stack:
- Frontend: React + TypeScript (type safety rocks)
- Backend: Node.js + Express (light and fast)
- Database: MongoDB (flexible for small projects)

These docs are my cheat sheet for Cursor — no guesswork allowed.

Step 3: Don’t Start from Scratch
Starting a project from a blank slate is a disaster with AI tools. Cursor struggles with
setup — file structures, boilerplate, dependencies. I learned this when it once gave
me a React project with a broken Webpack config. Now, I always use a starter kit.
For my task app, I grabbed a React + Node.js kit that looks like this:

taskmaster/
├── frontend/
│ ├── src/
│ │ ├── components/
│ │ ├── pages/
│ │ └── App.tsx
├── backend/
│ ├── src/
│ │ ├── routes/
│ │ └── server.ts
└── README.md

A starter kit lets Cursor focus on features, not scaffolding. It’s like giving a chef a
pre-chopped onion — less mess, more progress.
Step 4: Set Up Cursor Right
Got your plan, docs, and starter kit? Great. Now, before you type a single prompt in
Cursor, set the stage:

Create an Instructions folder in your project root.

Dump your CodeGuide docs into it.

Tell Cursor to use them as context by typing:

Go through all files in Instructions and use them as context.

This is like handing Cursor a blueprint before it starts building. Skip this, and you’re
asking for trouble.
Step 5: The Magic of Project Rules
Here’s where the magic happens. The biggest reason Cursor used to mess up my
code was that I didn’t set clear rules. Without rules, it guesses — and its guesses are
often wrong. Like the time it gave me a React class component when I wanted a
functional one. Frustrating!
Why .cursorrules Sucked
Cursor used to rely on a single .cursorrules file for rules, but it was a nightmare. I’d
cram all my instructions into one file, and Cursor would ignore half of them. It
didn’t scale, and the AI’s responses were all over the place.
Enter Project Rules (.mdc Files)
Thankfully, Cursor introduced Project Rules using .mdc files in a .cursor/rules/
directory. This was a game-changer. Project Rules let you set specific instructions
for different parts of your project. For my task app, I set up rules like this:

taskmaster/
├── .cursor/
│ └── rules/
│ ├── frontend.mdc
│ ├── backend.mdc

frontend.mdc

Scope: **/*.tsx
Rules:
- Use functional components + React hooks (no class nonsense)
- Stick to TypeScript strict mode (I’m a type nerd)
- Use Tailwind CSS (it’s fast)

backend.mdc

Scope: api/**/*.ts
Rules:
- Use Express.js for routing (my go-to)
- Follow RESTful API conventions (standards matter)
- Use async/await (no callback hell)
With these rules, Cursor stopped guessing and started delivering code that worked.
Night and day.
Step 6: Reap the Rewards
Since using Project Rules, my life’s easier. Cursor makes fewer mistakes, remembers
my style, and gets it right the first time. It’s like having a junior developer who
actually listens.
Step 7: My Tips for Project Rules
Here are my hard-earned tips for mastering Project Rules:

Keep Rules Specific: Separate frontend, backend, etc. Don’t cram everything
into one file.
Use Precise Scopes: Apply rules only where needed, like .tsx for React or
api/**/*.ts for backend.
Test Early: Generate a small code snippet first to check if Cursor’s following your
rules.
Update as Needed: If your project changes, update your rules. Don’t let them rot.
The Key to AI Coding
If you’re fed up with AI code that doesn’t work, the fix is simple: prepare and
control. Plan with ChatGPT Voice, document with CodeGuide, start with a kit, and
set rules with .mdc files. Do this, and Cursor will go from a source of frustration to
your best coding buddy.

Now, go code smarter, not harder. And if you’re still scribbling on napkins like me,
embrace it — it’s the human touch that makes the difference.
Cursor Ai Coding Programming AI Ai Coding

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Responses (4)

Isaias Prestes

What are your thoughts?

Ale Varta
4 days ago

Very clear and useful article, is valid to use rule files as a permanent context source instead of adding the
context to the prompt?

3 Reply

AweEdu
Mar 12

super, thanks! Very useful.

 1 1 reply Reply

Pedro Camargo
15 hours ago

The problem i have found is that all the models i have tried, use the rules as a strong recommendation. Not
as an iron rule. There are times that I can use AI for 2 hours and it works perfect, and one hour later starts to
mess up my code changing… more

Reply

See all responses

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