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Use past show-up rates to plan food for a club event
Practice: Giving the right context. About 5 minutes.
About this exercise
You're ordering food for the next club event, which has 150 RSVPs. Event 3 moved online at the last minute, so leave it out. Write exactly 3 numbered lines, one per remaining event, each as Event: checked in ÷ RSVPs = X%, then one unnumbered last line: Plan for: average % x 150 = N people. Plain text, under 60 words.
Common mistakes when you ask AI for this
- Including the Zoom event. The AI averages in event 3's 25% and under-orders food. Try: Add: "Leave out event 3; it moved online."
- Using a guess. The AI goes with the treasurer's 'plan for half.' Try: Add: "Use the average show-up rate from the data."
- Not asking to see the work. You'll want to check before spending the budget. Try: Add a line to copy: "1. Mixer: 90 ÷ 120 = 75%"
- Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting. Ask for a total word limit and it often lands over it. Try: Cap each line: "each line under 10 words."
- Forgetting where it goes. AI loves markdown tables and bold, which show up as clutter in the club's group chat. Try: Add: "Plain text, no bold, headings or tables."
What a strong prompt includes
- Leaves out event 3
- Asks for a headcount
- Asks to show the math
- Sets a word limit
- Asks for plain text
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