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Classify six cash items as Operating, Investing or Financing

  • For Accountants
  • You practice Setting limits and rules
  • Time about 5 minutes
  • Level Intermediate

About this exercise

You're classifying cash items for the small business cash flow statement. Write a prompt for a markdown table with columns Item, Amount and Category, one row per item in the listed order. Category must be exactly Operating, Investing or Financing. Company policy: interest paid is Operating. After the table add "Operating total:" with the signed amounts added and shown. Under 100 words.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • Putting interest in Financing. The AI classifies interest with the loan. Try: Say: "Company policy: interest paid is Operating."
  • Owner distributions as operating. The AI treats the owner's draw as an expense. Try: Add: "Owner distributions return money to owners: Financing."
  • Wrong total signs. The AI adds the interest as positive. Try: Add: "Use the signed amounts and show the addition."
  • Wrong table shape. The AI changes columns or order. Try: Add: "Columns Item, Amount, Category in listed order."
  • 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 part short.

What a strong prompt includes

  • Names the columns
  • Lists the categories
  • States the interest policy
  • Asks for the total
  • Caps length

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