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Turn offsite notes into a one-page strategy memo

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

About this exercise

You run Harlow Supply, a regional restaurant-supply distributor, and you need a one-page strategy memo for the board portal, which only accepts plain text. Use exactly four headings, each on its own line ending with a colon and in this order: Where we are:, Where we're going:, What we'll stop:, What we need:. Put at most 2 bullets under each heading, each bullet is one sentence under 18 words, and the memo is under 200 words, and no bold or # symbols. Use the corrected numbers from the notes.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • Letting the AI pick the headings. The AI invents its own sections like 'Executive Summary' and 'Strategic Pillars'. Try: List them: "Use exactly these 4 headings, in this order: Where we are:, ..."
  • Using the first number you see. The AI often grabs the 92% retention figure and misses the correction two lines later. Try: Add: "Use the corrected figures (retention is 88%)."
  • Treating parked ideas as plans. The AI rounds up a debate into a decision to sound decisive. Try: Add: "The fleet decision is parked; leave out the new-state idea."
  • Formatting for a doc editor. The AI adds # headings and bold, which show as symbols in a plain text field. Try: Say: "Plain text. Headings are plain lines ending in a colon. No bold or #."
  • Writing long bullet lists. Left alone, the AI lists every note under every heading. Try: Cap it: "At most 2 bullets per heading, each under 15 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: "each line under 15 words."

What a strong prompt includes

  • Names the four headings
  • Caps the bullets
  • Sets a word limit
  • Asks for plain text
  • Uses the corrected figures

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