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Turn a lead's rambling notes into a six-step receiving SOP

  • For Operations and supply chain
  • You practice Asking for a format you can use
  • Time about 5 minutes
  • Level Beginner

About this exercise

A new hire starts Monday and needs the dock receiving steps, not a story. Write a prompt for exactly 6 numbered steps in the order they happen at the dock, each starting with a verb. Include only steps for receiving a pallet and leave out everything else in the notes. Plain text, under 110 words.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • Signing too early. The AI follows the order of the notes, where the old signing habit is mentioned first. Try: Say: "Signing comes after the count and damage check."
  • Including unrelated notes. The AI turns every bullet into a step, including shift-end and forklift rules. Try: Say: "Only steps for receiving a pallet. Leave out everything else."
  • Wrong count or no verbs. The AI writes 5 or 8 steps, some as noun phrases. Try: Say: "Exactly 6 numbered steps, each starting with a verb."
  • Getting markdown back. AI adds bold, headings and bullets by default, which show up as stray symbols where this is pasted. Try: Say "plain text, no bold, no headings, no asterisks".
  • Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting and usually runs long, so a vague "keep it short" lands over the limit. Try: Cap each part instead of the total, for example "each line under 15 words".

What a strong prompt includes

  • Gives the step count
  • Sets the order
  • Says what to leave out
  • Starts steps with a verb
  • Asks for plain text

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