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Brief an assistant to draft honest questions to professors

  • For College students
  • You practice Saying who it's for
  • Time about 5 minutes

About this exercise

You want an AI assistant to draft emails to three professors about things you're stuck on. Write its brief: greet each as "Professor" plus their last name, ask about the concept rather than asking whether a graded answer is right, keep each email under 80 words, and never send. Output exactly 4 numbered plain-text lines: one draft per class in note order, then DONE.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • Not showing the log format. Left alone, the AI writes a friendly report with headings instead of a checkable action log. Try: Show it literally: "Format every line like 1. ACTION: tool(args), then ASK_HUMAN: and DONE: lines. Plain text."
  • Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting and runs long, especially when it explains each step. Try: Cap each line instead: "each line under 20 words, no explanations."
  • No greeting rule. The AI writes "Hi Daniel" or "Dear Dr. Hannah". Try: Say: "Greet each as Professor plus last name."
  • Asking for graded answers. The AI follows your notes and asks the professor to check graded work, which most won't do. Try: Add: "Ask about the concept. Don't ask if a graded answer is right."
  • No length or send rule. The AI writes long, apologetic emails and may send them. Try: Add: "Each under 60 words. Draft only, never send."

What a strong prompt includes

  • Sets the greeting
  • Keeps it honest
  • Sets a length
  • Says draft, never send
  • Shows the action-log format

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