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Explain an employee's time-off balance with the math
Practice: Keeping the AI to your sources. About 5 minutes.
About this exercise
An employee asked in Slack why her PTO balance shows 6 days instead of 9. Reply under 60 words, plain text. The first sentence answers with the math, then explain the carryover cap in one sentence using the correct number, and end with the link to the PTO page, hr.example/pto, with nothing after it. Write a prompt that gets that reply.
Common mistakes when you ask AI for this
- Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting. Ask for "under 60 words" and it often lands well over. Try: Cap each part: "3 sentences, each under 16 words, then the link."
- Hiding the answer. The AI opens with "Great question!" and explains the portal before the math. Try: Say it: "Sentence 1: 9 days minus your 3 pending days is 6."
- Using the old cap. The notes mention the old 3-day carryover. The AI may use it. Try: Add: "Up to 5 days carry over."
- Ending with chatter. AI Slack replies end with "Let me know if you have other questions! 😊" instead of the link. Try: Add: "Last line is hr.example/pto, nothing after it."
- Forgetting where it gets pasted. AI adds bold and headings by default, which show up as ** and # clutter in Slack. Try: Add: "Plain text, no bold, no headings."
What a strong prompt includes
- Sets a word limit
- Leads with the math
- Uses the current cap
- Ends with the link
- Asks for plain text
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