Authenticity in Writing Prompts

I think that anyone including adults prefer to have a writing prompt that is relevant to them in some shape, form or fashion. I know that in college if I had a prompt that had nothing to do with anything I found interesting, I really did put a lot of effort into writing my essay. I always try to use writing prompts that will relate to my students. Sometimes, I have to help them relate the prompt to their life. After they see the relation then the light bulb goes off and they enjoy writing.