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Explain a travel meal allowance with the traveler's own trip

Practice: Showing an example of what you want. About 5 minutes.

About this exercise

A first-time traveler asked how much she can spend on meals for her 3-day trip. Explain under 70 words, plain text, with the math for her trip on its own line, using the current daily rate and the travel-day rule. End with what she does NOT need to do (keep meal receipts). No jargon ('per diem', 'M&IE', 'GSA', 'incidentals'). Write a prompt that gets that.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting. Ask for "under 70 words" and it often lands well over. Try: Cap each part: "3 sentences under 16 words plus one math line."
  • Old rate, no travel-day rule. The AI may use the old $74 rate or give $80 x 3. Try: Say it: "$80 a day; travel days are 75%, so $60."
  • No math for her trip. The AI explains the policy but doesn't total her three days. Try: Add: "Math line: $60 + $80 + $60 = $200."
  • Jargon and a missed answer. AI uses "per diem" and "M&IE" and forgets she asked about receipts. Try: Add: "End: you don't need meal receipts. No per diem, M&IE, GSA or incidentals. Plain text."

What a strong prompt includes

  • Sets a word limit
  • Uses the current rate
  • Shows the math
  • Answers the receipt question
  • Bans jargon

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