Sort five metrics into wins and misses with variances

About this exercise

Compare each metric to plan and write exactly three lines in plain text: "Wins:" listing the metrics that beat plan with the variance in brackets, "Misses:" listing the metrics that fell short with the variance in brackets, and "Biggest miss:" naming the miss with the larger percent shortfall relative to plan, with the percent. Churn is better when lower. Use points for percentage metrics and whole percent for counts. Under 80 words.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

• Churn judged backwards. The AI lists lower churn as a miss. Try: Say: "Churn is better when lower."
• Mixing units. The AI shows margin in percent of percent. Try: Say: "Points for percentage metrics, whole percent for counts."
• Wrong biggest miss. The AI picks margin because of the point drop. Try: Say: "Biggest miss: the larger percent shortfall relative to plan."
• Wrong format. The AI writes a table or paragraphs. Try: Say: "Exactly three lines: Wins:, Misses:, Biggest miss:."
• Markdown. The AI bolds metrics. Try: Say: "Plain text."
• 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 15 words."

What a strong prompt includes

• Three labels
• Variance in brackets
• Churn direction
• Units rule
• Biggest miss rule

Practice this now ↑

Related exercises

• Accrue unpaid wages for the working days after the last pay period (Finance AI · Accountants)
• Acknowledge a director's critical feedback without defensiveness (Leadership AI · Executives)
• Age a returns queue in business days and flag the ones over the limit (Customer Support & Success AI · Customer support teams)
• Alert sales to a competitor's price change, facts only (Research & AI Search · Product managers)
• Announce a CFO departure in three plain sentences (Leadership AI · Executives)