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Find the food pantry's busiest day after a holiday closure
Practice: Giving the right context. About 5 minutes.
About this exercise
You want to add volunteers on the pantry's busiest day. The pantry was closed Thursday Nov 27 for Thanksgiving, so average Thursday over the 3 days it was open. Write exactly 3 numbered lines, one per open day, each as Day: (visits added) ÷ days open = average, then one unnumbered last line: Add volunteers: [day]. Plain text, under 70 words.
Common mistakes when you ask AI for this
- Not mentioning the closure. The AI averages in Thanksgiving's 0 and Saturday looks busiest. Try: Add: "Closed Nov 27; average Thursday over 3 days."
- Not asking to see the work. The board will ask how you got each average. Try: Add a line to copy: "1. Tue: (80 + 90 + 85 + 85) ÷ 4 = 85"
- 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 14 words."
- Forgetting where it goes. AI loves markdown tables and bold, which show up as clutter in a volunteer email. Try: Add: "Plain text, no bold, headings or tables."
What a strong prompt includes
- Mentions the closure
- Asks to show the math
- Asks for one pick
- Sets a word limit
- Asks for plain text
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