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Turn retro sticky notes into a one-page memo with headings

  • For Product managers
  • You practice Asking for a format you can use
  • Time about 5 minutes
  • Level Intermediate

About this exercise

Turn the raw retro notes into a short memo for the team in plain text. Use exactly these four headings, each on its own line followed by a colon: Went well, Went badly, Patterns, Actions. Keep it under 130 words. Each Action has one owner's first name and a date. Merge duplicate notes, and do not assign anyone who was not named.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • Different headings. The AI uses '## What went well' or other titles. Try: Say: "Exactly these headings with a colon: Went well:, Went badly:, Patterns:, Actions:."
  • Repeating duplicates. The AI lists the demo and the env outage twice. Try: Say: "Merge duplicate notes into one item."
  • Inventing owners. The AI assigns the unowned action to the PM or the QA lead. Try: Say: "If nobody owns an action, write 'owner needed'."
  • Markdown headings. The AI adds # signs and bold. Try: Say: "Plain text, no # and no bold."
  • 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 sections: "each section under 40 words."
  • 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."

What a strong prompt includes

  • Lists the four headings
  • Merges duplicates
  • Handles owners
  • Plain text
  • Sets a length

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