Total an offsite budget table and flag the overrun

About this exercise

Build the offsite budget as a markdown table with columns Item, Qty, Unit cost, Line total. One row per item in the notes, using the final prices. After the table add two lines: Total: with the sum as a calculation, and Budget check: stating the amount over or under the $18,000 budget. Do not include items marked excluded. Output only the table and those two lines.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

• Old lunch price. The AI uses $35. Try: Say: "Lunch is $32."
• Including excluded items. The AI adds the ropes course. Try: Say: "Leave out excluded items."
• Math mistakes. The AI mis-multiplies. Try: Say: "Show the sum as a calculation."
• Missing the budget check. The AI ends after the table. Try: Say: "End with Total: and Budget check:."
• 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 it: "short cells, numbers only."
• 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 part instead, for example: "each line under 12 words."
• Adding bold and notes. The AI bolds text and adds a title or notes around the answer. Try: Say: "Plain text only: no bold, no headings, no notes."

What a strong prompt includes

• Columns
• Total line
• Budget check
• Exclude
• Final prices

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