What to write in your answers
Good and weak example answers for the first questions, so your digital twin sounds like you and not like a brochure. All examples are invented.
Your digital twin can only say what you wrote, so the first fifteen answers are where all the quality comes from. The good news is that they don’t need to be long or clever. A sentence or two is enough. They just need to be true and sound like you. Here is what that looks like, for the ones people find hardest. Every example below is invented.
One test before you start
Read your answer and ask: would I say this to someone across a table? The question screen says “Say it like you’d say it”, and it means that. If your answer sounds like a job advert or a greeting card, start again. If typing makes you stiff, tap the mic on your phone’s keyboard and talk.
Who are you?
Weak: “I am a passionate, hard-working person who loves helping others.”
Better: “I run the night shift at a care home and study nursing in the daytime. If I yawn at you, it isn’t personal.”
The weak one could be anybody. The better one gives your twin real facts to work with, and a bit of your humour as well. If you are a student or between jobs, just say so.
What you are into right now
Weak: “I like learning new things.”
Better: “Sourdough, and I’m not proud of how much. My starter has a name. I’ve read two books on it and I bring it up on night shift, where nobody asked.”
Name the actual thing. A twin that knows what you’re into this month has something to say the moment a friend asks what’s new. This is the easiest question there is, so let yourself go on a bit.
Your hobbies, and what you are a fan of
Weak: “Reading, music and sports.”
Better: “Sunday swimming, badly. Crosswords on my break. And I’ve followed the same third-division football team since I was nine, which has taught me everything I know about disappointment.”
Everybody reads and listens to music. What makes it yours is which ones, and why you can’t let go of them.
What you love and can’t stand
Weak: “I love my friends and I hate negativity.”
Better: “Love: the first tea after a shift, people who remember your mum’s name. Can’t stand: wet socks, and being told to cheer up.”
Small and specific beats big and noble. This is the answer that makes your twin sound like it has opinions, because you do.
The text from a friend
This question asks you to reply to a friend who texts, “what are you up to tonight?”
Weak: “I will be spending a relaxing evening at home.”
Better: “night shift again lol. the old folks tell better stories than netflix anyway”
This one matters more than it looks. It is the answer your twin leans on most for how you sound, so reply the way you really text, lowercase and all.
One good thing, one hard thing
Weak: “I’m a perfectionist and sometimes I care too much.”
Better: “I always turn up, and I remember the small things people tell me. The hard thing: when I’m annoyed I go quiet for a day instead of saying so.”
The weak answer is a compliment in disguise, and everyone can tell. One honest flaw makes the nice things believable.
What you are chasing
Weak: “Open to new opportunities.”
Better: “Someone to swim with on Sunday mornings, and people who want a book club that actually reads the book. Nothing else right now.”
“Nothing at all” is also a fine answer. Say what you want and stop. Your twin will repeat it, and it can’t promise anything on your behalf.
What you could talk about for hours
Weak: “Lots of things. Music, travel, food.”
Better: “Why the second album is always worse. Also my grandmother’s stuffed vine leaves, and why nobody else’s are right. Bring up either one and cancel your evening.”
A list of topics gives people nothing to hold on to. A strong opinion gives them a place to start.
What to leave out
Leave out phone numbers and email addresses. The page will ask you to take them out, and a person’s twin never hands those out anyway. Leave out other people’s names and private details. Leave out anything you wouldn’t want a stranger to read, because your answers are public the moment your page is live, and a visitor can open “Where does this come from?” and see your exact words.
You also don’t need to cover everything. If you never mention your job, your twin won’t guess. It will say you didn’t write about that and tell the person to ask you. That is how it is meant to work.
When you get stuck
If a question doesn’t fit your life, press Skip and another takes its place. Write something short and come back to it later, because you can change any answer at any time, and your twin changes with it. “What are you busy with these days?” is the one that goes stale first, so look at it every so often.
After a week or so, read your chats. You also get a list called “Asked, but it had nothing to go on”, which shows what people wanted to know and you hadn’t written. That list will teach you more than any guide, including this one.
Last step: read them all out loud. Your twin will be saying these things to people who want to know you, so if a line makes you wince, change it. When you are happy, go and write yours. If you are wondering what the twin can and can’t do with them, the questions page has answers.