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Personal Definitions

If you have personal connections, you can add definitions to help Teela understand your data better. Definitions are plain-English notes that describe what your columns mean, what abbreviations stand for, how your data is structured, and any business rules Teela should know about.

This is the personal equivalent of the documentation that admins add to team connections. The difference is that personal definitions are private to you and only apply to your personal connections.

Why Definitions Matter​

Teela can see the structure of your spreadsheet (column names, data types), but it can't see what the data means. A column called Status could contain anything. A column called Rev could be "revenue," "revisions," or "reviews." Definitions fill in that context so Teela can answer your questions accurately.

The more definitions you add, the more accurately Teela can answer questions about your personal data.

Adding a Definition​

  1. Open your personal connection settings and go to the Definitions tab.
  2. Click Add a Definition.
  3. Write a note in plain English describing something about your data.
  4. Click Save.

Examples of Good Definitions​

  • "The Status column can be Pending, Shipped, or Delivered"
  • "Rev means Revenue in thousands of dollars"
  • "Each row is one order line, not one order"
  • "Dates are stored as text in MM/DD/YYYY format"
  • "Only rows where Active = Yes should be included in reports"
  • "The Amount column includes tax but not shipping"

What to Focus On​

The most valuable definitions explain things Teela can't figure out from the column names alone:

  • Status codes and abbreviations: What does each value mean?
  • Units and formats: Is the amount in dollars or cents? Are dates in MM/DD/YYYY or YYYY-MM-DD?
  • Row meaning: Does each row represent an order, an order line item, a customer, a transaction?
  • Filters and exclusions: Should certain rows always be ignored?
  • Calculated fields: How is a value derived?

You don't need to define columns with obvious names. A column called customer_email doesn't need a definition.

Editing and Deleting Definitions​

Your definitions are listed in the Definitions tab for each personal connection. You can:

  • Search to filter definitions by content
  • Edit any definition by clicking the pencil icon
  • Delete a definition by clicking the trash icon

Validate and Enhance​

When you add or edit a definition, you can click Validate & Enhance instead of saving directly. Teela will review your note and improve it by:

  • Mapping terms to your schema: Teela checks that the columns and tables you mention actually exist in your data. If something doesn't match, you'll see an unmapped term warning.
  • Removing overly specific details: If your definition references a specific date, name, or one-time scenario, Teela suggests a more generalized version.
  • Improving clarity: Teela rewrites the definition to be more useful for future queries while preserving the core meaning.

After enhancement, you'll see coaching notes explaining what changed and why. If you prefer your original wording, you can undo the enhancement with one click.

tip

Validate & Enhance is a great way to learn what good definitions look like. Write your best attempt, click the button, and see how Teela improves it.

  • Connections: Set up and manage your personal connections
  • Training the AI: How admins train Teela on team connections (similar concepts, admin-level tools)
  • Training Best Practices: Tips that apply to both admin documentation and personal definitions