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Compare accrued amounts with actual invoices and net the true-up
- For Accountants
- You practice Catching mistakes and made-up facts
- Time about 5 minutes
- Level Intermediate
About this exercise
You're comparing October accruals with the invoices that arrived in November. Write a prompt for plain text with lines starting "Audit fee:", "Freight:", "Net difference:" and "Where it lands:". Each of the first two shows accrued, actual and the difference with a sign (positive means under-accrued). Under 70 words. Per policy, accruals reverse on Nov 1 and the invoice is booked in full in November, so the difference lands in November. Facts only. No bullets or numbering. Do not mention the audit partner or any explanation for the difference.
Common mistakes when you ask AI for this
- Wrong sign. The AI shows the over-accrued freight as positive. Try: Say: "Positive means under-accrued."
- Repeating the partner's explanation. The AI says the audit fee rose due to additional procedures. Try: Add: "Do not give causes."
- Landing in October. The AI restates October. Try: Add: "The difference lands in November; do not restate October."
- Markdown extras. The AI adds bold labels, headings and a closing note. Try: Say: "Plain text, no bold. Output only the lines asked for."
- Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting and runs past word limits. Try: Ask for fewer words than the real cap and keep each line short.
What a strong prompt includes
- Names the four lines
- Gives the sign convention
- States the landing month
- Bans causes
- Caps length
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