Map month-end close tasks onto real dates around a holiday

About this exercise

You run the November close at a small accounting team and need the close calendar for the team channel. You want exactly 6 numbered lines, each as Workday N (date) - task - owner, under 80 words, plain text. Workdays skip weekends and the office holiday in your notes, and one owner changed, so use the new one. Write a prompt that gets you exactly that.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

• Not mentioning the holiday. The AI counts calendar days straight through and puts work on the offsite day. Try: Add: "Skip weekends and Wed Dec 3, the office is closed."
• Missing the owner change. Jess is next to payroll in the list, and the AI often keeps her. Try: Add: "Owen covers payroll accruals while Jess is on leave."
• Not giving the line format. The AI writes a table or leaves off the dates. Try: Add: "Format each line as Workday N (date) - task - owner."
• Letting the AI pick the layout. The AI adds headings, bold and tips about closing faster. Try: Be exact: "Exactly 6 numbered lines, plain text, nothing else."
• 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 line under 9 words."

What a strong prompt includes

• Says how many lines
• Gives the line format
• Skips the holiday
• Uses the new owner
• Sets a word limit

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