Compute DSO and DPO after removing a non-trade balance

About this exercise

You're calculating working capital days for the quarter (92 days). Write a prompt for plain text with lines starting "Trade AR:", "DSO:", "DPO:" and "DSO minus DPO:", each with the math, to one decimal. DSO uses trade receivables over quarterly revenue; DPO uses payables over quarterly cost of goods sold. Leave out non-trade balances. Facts only. Under 70 words. No bullets or numbering.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

• Including the employee loans. The AI uses $1,260,000 and reports DSO of 27.6. Try: Say: "Remove the non-trade employee loans from receivables."
• Using total costs for DPO. The AI divides payables by $3,900,000. Try: Add: "DPO uses COGS, not total operating costs."
• Echoing the treasurer. The AI suggests ways to lower DSO. Try: Add: "Facts only; ignore the treasurer's comment."
• Markdown extras. The AI adds bold labels, headings and a closing note. Try: Say: "Plain text, no bold. Output only the lines asked for."
• Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting and runs past word limits. Try: Ask for fewer words than the real cap and keep each line short.

What a strong prompt includes

• Names the four lines
• Removes non-trade
• Uses the right base
• Facts only
• Caps length

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