The optimization playbook

Nothing here requires a different plan or a cheaper model. These are changes to how a session is built — and because input dominates almost every bill, they are usually worth more than any pricing decision you could make. The mechanics behind that claim are in tokens and context.

The four levers, in order of how much they typically return:

1. Session structure. Start a new conversation when the task changes. Carry a summary, not a history. This is the big one.
2. Context discipline. Send the function, not the file. Excerpt documents. Put standing rules in project instructions once.
3. Model choice. Match the model to the difficulty of the task rather than defaulting to the heaviest.
4. Output control. Ask for diffs, not rewrites. Cap length. Stop a wrong answer early instead of letting it finish.

Knowing the levers is not the same as knowing which one you personally are losing money on. That is what the audit is for: your actual transcript, read by a human, with the expensive habit named.