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Pull owned action items out of a rambling meeting
Practice: Keeping the AI to your sources. About 5 minutes.
About this exercise
After a long ops meeting, you're posting the action items. Write exactly 3 numbered lines in the form 'Owner: action by date', plain text, under 50 words. Include only actions someone clearly agreed to own, with the final date if it changed, and leave out ideas nobody took.
Common mistakes when you ask AI for this
- Asking for 'meeting notes'. The AI recaps the whole discussion with headings. Try: Be exact: "Exactly 3 numbered lines 'Owner: action by date'. 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 line instead: "each line under 12 words."
- Using the first date. Bea first said Oct 10, then agreed to Oct 8. Try: Add: "Use the final date if it changed (holiday schedule by Oct 8)."
- Including unowned ideas. The AI turns every 'someone should' into an action. Try: Add: "Only actions someone agreed to own."
What a strong prompt includes
- Shows the line shape
- Only owned actions
- Uses final dates
- Sets the number of items
- Sets a word limit
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