Rank a facilities team's request backlog by your director's rules

About this exercise

You manage the facilities team at a medical office building, and your director wants this week's top 5 requests. You want exactly 5 numbered lines ranked by her rules, each as request - reason in under 8 words, under 80 words, plain text. Skip anything already done, and rank only by the rules in her message, not by who complained loudest. Write a prompt that gets you exactly that.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

• Ranking by complaints. The microwave has the most complaints and the angriest notes, so the AI moves it up. Try: Add: "Rank only by Rhonda's rules. Complaint counts don't matter."
• Not asking for the reason. The AI gives a bare list, and Rhonda can't see why the order is right. Try: Add: "After each request, give the reason in under 8 words."
• Keeping finished items. The AI doesn't notice that one item says DONE. Try: Add: "Skip anything already done."
• Letting the AI pick the layout. The AI writes a table or a long explanation. Try: Be exact: "Exactly 5 numbered lines like '1. Lobby door - patient access and safety'. Plain text."
• 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 11 words."

What a strong prompt includes

• Says how many lines
• Uses the director's rules
• Ignores complaint counts
• Skips done items
• Asks for a reason

Practice this now ↑

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