Mastering Cursor AI: The 30-Minute Setup That Changes Everything

The Secret Sauce: Research Priority

Here's something most people miss. Cursor can search the web and docs for you, but it needs to know where to look and in what order.

My research stack (in AGENTS.md):

1. Exa.ai for initial research (especially get_code_context_exa for code-specific stuff)
2. Ref.tools for verification or when Exa fails twice
3. Only repeat searches if you're refining, not just retrying

Why this matters: Without this, Cursor will ping random docs, hallucinate APIs, or give you outdated info from its training cutoff.

The Tim Ferriss Minimum Effective Dose

Don't do this:

• Write a 500-line style guide
• Copy someone else's entire ruleset
• Create rules for edge cases you haven't hit yet

Do this instead:

1. Start with AGENTS.md (15 minutes)
2. Add 5-10 global rules based on what annoys you (10 minutes)
3. Code for a week
4. Add rules when you notice patterns of AI misbehavior
5. Remove rules that don't actually change behavior

The goal: After 2-3 weeks, Cursor should feel like it's reading your mind. Not perfectly, but like it's worked with you for months.

What This Actually Looks Like In Practice

Before: "Build a login page"
AI creates 8 components, uses inline styles, no error handling, commits your API key

After: "Build a login page"
AI uses your shadcn/ui components, Tailwind utilities, proper error handling, references .env.example, asks about your auth approach before implementing

The One Thing That Matters Most

Here's the real secret: Be specific about what you DON'T want.

AIs are optimizers. Without constraints, they'll optimize for "code that works" which might mean:

• 2000-line files
• Emojis everywhere
• Creating documentation you didn't ask for
• Helpful comments like // increment counter
• Generic cookie-cutter UI

Your DON'T list is more powerful than your DO list.

Start Here (Next 30 Minutes)

1. Create AGENTS.md in your project root
2. Write 3 sentences about what you're building
3. List 3-5 things you DO want (frameworks, code style, design approach)
4. List 3-5 things you DON'T want (secrets committed, emoji spam, obvious comments)
5. Add your dev server commands
6. Open Cursor Settings → add 5-10 global rules about how you think about code
7. Start coding

That's it. Don't get fancy. Don't copy my entire setup. Start small, iterate fast.

The Payoff

After doing this, you'll notice:

• Fewer "what the hell did you just do" moments
• Code that actually matches your existing patterns
• Less time explaining context
• More time in flow state
• AI that feels like a senior dev who gets it

The difference between AI that frustrates you and AI that 10x's you isn't the model. It's the 30 minutes you spend teaching it how you work.

Now go ship something.

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P.S. - The best test of your setup? Ask Cursor to refactor something. If it maintains your style, naming conventions, and doesn't create a bunch of docs you didn't ask for, you've nailed it. If not, look at what it did wrong and add that to your DON'T list.