Beyond the Prompt · Issue 03 · AI Tips · 6 min read
Write Instructions Like You'd Brief a New Hire
This is the third issue of Beyond the Prompt. So far, you've told your AI tool who you are and given it a filing cabinet for your work. This week is about the words you put inside: how to write instructions that get you the answer you want the first time.
Why the First Answer Misses
You ask for help with an email. The draft comes back too formal. You ask again, and it's too long. Third try, it's close, but it doesn't sound like you. By the time it's right, you could have written it yourself.
It's tempting to blame the tool. But most of the time, the problem is the brief. We give AI a one-line request and expect it to fill in everything we didn't say: the goal, the audience, the tone, the limits.
You already know how to fix this, because you've done it for years with people. I've spent two decades in corporate leadership, and the lesson has always been the same: a clear brief makes all the difference. When you onboard a new team member, you don't just say "write the update." You explain why it matters, who it's for, what good looks like, and what to steer clear of.
"AI isn't a mind reader. It's a very capable new hire who needs a good brief."
The Difference a Brief Makes
Here's the same request, written two ways.
Before
"Write an email to the client about the delay."
After
"Write an email to a long-time client letting them know their order will ship one week late. My goal is to keep their trust. They're busy and appreciate directness. Acknowledge the delay without over-apologizing, explain the new date, and offer one concrete next step. Avoid blaming our supplier. Keep it under 150 words, in a warm, professional tone."
The second version takes 30 extra seconds to write. It usually saves several rounds of back-and-forth.
Going Deeper: 5 Parts of a Great AI Brief
Tip 01 of 05
Start with the goal, not the task
A new hire who knows why they're doing something makes better decisions than one who only knows what to do. The same is true for AI. Before you describe the task, say what you're trying to achieve: win back a frustrated client, get a decision from leadership, or keep a project on schedule.
Try this prompt
"Before you draft anything, here's my goal: [what I want to happen as a result]. Now here's the task: [what I need]. If anything in the task conflicts with the goal, point it out."
Tip 02 of 05
Name the reader
The same update reads very differently to your CEO, your team, and a client. Tell AI exactly who will read the result and what they care about. It's the fastest way to get the right level of detail on the first try.
Try this prompt
"This will be read by [audience]. They care most about [their priorities] and have about [time] to read it. Write for them, and tell me if anything I've included won't matter to them."
Tip 03 of 05
Show, don't just tell: save your email voice
Describing your style is hard. Showing it is easy. In Issue 03 of the first series, we used AI to draft the emails you'd been dreading. Now let's make every draft sound like you. Give AI a few emails you've sent that you were happy with, and ask it to turn your style into instructions you can save in a project or your custom instructions.
Try this prompt
"Here are three emails I've written that sound like me: [paste them, with names and confidential details removed]. Write a short 'email voice' instruction describing my greeting, tone, sentence length, how direct I am, and how I sign off, so every future draft sounds like me."
Tip 04 of 05
Say what to avoid
Every good brief includes the guardrails: the words you'd never use, the promises you can't make, the topics that are off-limits. One line about what to avoid saves you three rounds of edits.
Try this prompt
"When you draft this, avoid [e.g., making commitments about dates, overly formal language, blaming anyone, jargon]. If you think I should include one of these anyway, ask me first."
Tip 05 of 05
Define what done looks like
A new hire needs to know when the job is finished. AI does too. Be specific about the format, the length, and what you want back, whether that's three options, a single draft, or a table. "Done" is the part most prompts leave out.
Try this prompt
"Give me [one draft / three options / a table], no longer than [length], formatted as [bullets / short paragraphs]. End with one question I should consider before sending."
Your 15-Minute "Write It Once" Routine
Pick one task you ask AI for every week, and write its brief once. From then on, it's copy, paste, done.
Pick a task you repeat (2 minutes)
Choose something you ask AI for every week: a status update, a meeting recap, a client follow-up, a weekly plan.
Write the brief (5 minutes)
Use the checklist below, or paste the full prompt and let AI interview you.
The full prompt
"I want to turn a task I do every week into reusable instructions. The task is [task]. Interview me one question at a time about the goal, who reads the result, an example I liked, what to avoid, and what the finished result should look like. Then write clear instructions under 200 words that I can save and reuse."
Test it on a real example (5 minutes)
Run this week's version of the task through your new instructions. Compare the result with what you usually get.
Refine and save (3 minutes)
Fix anything that's off, then save the final instructions in a project or as a saved prompt, so next week takes seconds.
Prefer a checklist? Run through these six lines before you hit enter.
Your new-hire brief checklist
Goal: What do I want to happen as a result?
Reader: Who will read this, and what do they care about?
Context: What background does AI need that it can't guess?
Example: Do I have a sample of what good looks like?
Avoid: What words, promises, or topics are off-limits?
Done: What format and length do I want back?
A note on privacy: when you share sample emails or documents as examples, remove names, client details, and anything confidential first. And as always, check your company's AI policy before using work material.
What Actually Changes
Writing better instructions isn't a technical skill. It's a leadership skill, and it's one you've been building your whole career.
Every time you've set clear expectations for a team, briefed a vendor, or delegated a project, you've practiced exactly what makes AI useful. The difference now is that the "new hire" works in seconds and never gets tired of your follow-up questions.
That's why experience matters so much here. You know what a good result looks like, so you can describe it. The people who get the most from AI aren't the most technical. They're the most intentional.
This week's challenge
Write one brief you'll use again.
Pick the task you ask AI for most often. Use the checklist to write its instructions, test them on this week's real example, and save the final version. Next week, notice how much faster that task goes.
If you try this this week, hit reply on any of my emails and tell me which task you wrote a brief for. I genuinely read every one.
