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Choose which bills fit this week's payment run

Practice: Setting limits and rules. About 5 minutes.

About this exercise

You have $30,000 for this week's vendor payment run. Following the controller's rules (critical vendors first, then oldest due date, and never a partial payment), list the bills you'll pay as exactly 3 numbered lines in the form "Vendor - $amount - reason", then a final unnumbered line with the total and the amount left over. Under 80 words, plain text. Write a prompt that gets you exactly that.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • No fixed shape. The AI writes a table and a paragraph of reasoning. Try: Be exact: "Exactly 3 numbered lines: Vendor - $amount - reason, then a total line."
  • Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting. Ask for "under 80 words" and it often lands well over. Try: Cap each part instead: "each reason under 8 words."
  • Bending the rules. The AI pays Copper Bay because they called, or splits Oakline in half. Try: Add: "Critical first, then oldest due date, never a partial payment."
  • Skipping the math check. Without a total line, nobody can see whether the run fits the budget. Try: Add: "End with the total and the amount left."
  • No reasons. A bare list doesn't show why each bill was picked. Try: Add: "Give a short reason on each line."

What a strong prompt includes

  • Applies the rules in order
  • Bans partial payments
  • Asks for a total
  • Shows the line shape
  • Sets a word limit

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