Writing and email prompts

A client or customer is angry in writing and you need a reply that lowers the temperature without promising anything you cannot deliver.

You are an experienced account manager who stays calm under pressure and writes clearly. Draft a reply to a tense email from a client.

The email I received: [PASTE THE CLIENT'S EMAIL]
What actually happened, from my side: [WHAT HAPPENED AND WHY]
What I can offer or commit to: [WHAT I CAN OFFER]
My relationship with this client: [RELATIONSHIP CONTEXT]

Write the reply so it does four things in order: acknowledge their specific frustration in one sentence without groveling, state plainly what happened, say what I will do and by when, and close with one concrete next step. Keep it under 180 words. Do not blame anyone on my team or theirs, do not over-apologize, and do not make promises beyond what I listed above. Match the formality of their email.

After the draft, list any sentence where you had to guess at a fact so I can check it. If you are missing something you need, such as the original timeline or what was promised, ask me before you draft.

Tip: Paste the whole thread, not only the last message; tone is easier to read with the history. Then read the draft aloud once before you send it.

Someone asked for your time, a discount, a favor, or a deadline you cannot give, and you want to say no once, clearly, and stay on good terms.

You are a tactful communicator who says no clearly without damaging relationships. Write an email declining a request.

The request: [THE REQUEST]
Who is asking and my relationship to them: [WHO IS ASKING]
The real reason I am declining: [REAL REASON]
What I can offer instead, if anything: [ALTERNATIVE OR NONE]

Requirements: put the no in the first two sentences so they do not have to hunt for it. Give one honest reason without over-explaining or inventing excuses. If I listed an alternative, offer it specifically; if I wrote none, do not invent one. Thank them once, not three times. Do not use 'unfortunately' or 'I hope you understand'. Length: 80 to 130 words. Tone: warm and direct.

Give me two versions: one for someone I work with often, and one for someone I barely know. If the request is ambiguous or you cannot tell what they actually want, ask me before writing.

Tip: Tell the AI the real reason even if you will not put it in the email; it writes a more convincing no when it knows what is true.

A long email or chat thread needs to become a record of what was decided and who owes what, for people who were not on it.

You are a chief of staff who turns messy email threads into clear records. Read the thread below and produce a brief I can forward to people who were not on it.

Thread: [PASTE THE EMAIL THREAD]
My role in this: [YOUR ROLE]
Who the brief is for: [AUDIENCE]

Output, in this order:
1. One-sentence summary of what the thread is about.
2. Decisions made, each as a single line with who decided and when (quote the message date if visible).
3. Open questions nobody answered.
4. Action items as a table with columns: owner, action, due date, source message. Write 'unassigned' when no owner is named. Do not invent owners or dates.
5. Anything that looks like a disagreement still unresolved.

Keep the whole brief under 250 words. Use names exactly as they appear. If a decision was reversed later in the thread, note the reversal instead of listing both versions. Flag anything you were unsure how to classify.

Tip: Copy the thread oldest to newest so the order of decisions is clear. If an attachment matters, paste its key lines too.

You need approval or a decision from someone senior, and your draft buries the ask under background.

You are an executive communications advisor. Rewrite my message for a senior leader who reads on a phone between meetings and will decide in under a minute.

My draft: [PASTE YOUR DRAFT]
Who it is going to and what they care about: [EXECUTIVE AND THEIR PRIORITIES]
What I need from them: [THE ASK (DECISION, APPROVAL, OR INFORMATION)]
By when: [DEADLINE]

Rewrite rules: the first line states the ask and the deadline. The second block gives the two or three facts they need to decide, with numbers where I gave them. Then the recommendation and the one risk of not acting. Cut background, process detail, and anything they can ask for later. Total length under 120 words. Short sentences. No jargon and no hedging phrases like 'I think' or 'just wanted to'.

If my draft does not actually contain a clear ask or a recommendation, tell me that first and ask what I want them to do, rather than guessing.

Tip: If the AI says your draft has no clear ask, believe it. Decide what you want from the executive before you generate a second version.

The weekly or monthly project update is due and all you have is a pile of notes, chat messages, and a ticket list.

You are a project manager known for status updates people actually read. Turn my raw notes into a written status update.

Project name: [PROJECT NAME]
Audience: [AUDIENCE]
This period's notes, unedited: [PASTE YOUR RAW NOTES]
Overall status as I see it: [GREEN, YELLOW, OR RED]

Format:
- Headline: one sentence, status color first, then the single most important fact.
- Done since last update: three to five bullets, past tense, each stating a concrete outcome rather than activity.
- Coming next: three bullets with dates.
- Risks and blockers: each with what I need and from whom. If none, write 'None this period'.
- Decisions needed: with the date by which I need each one.

Keep it under 200 words, in plain language a non-technical stakeholder can follow. Do not soften a yellow or red status. If my notes mention something that sounds like a risk but I did not label it, put it under risks and mark it 'check'. If any date or owner is missing, ask me instead of leaving a blank.

Tip: Reuse this prompt each period and paste the previous update alongside the new notes; ask the AI to keep the same structure so readers can compare.

You have thoughts scattered across notes and messages and you need them as a one-page memo someone can read and decide on.

You are a business writer who structures ideas clearly. Turn my rough notes into a one-page memo.

Notes: [PASTE YOUR NOTES]
Purpose of the memo: [PURPOSE (INFORM, RECOMMEND, OR REQUEST A DECISION)]
Readers: [READERS]
Decision or action I want from them, if any: [DESIRED OUTCOME]

Structure: a subject line of eight words or fewer; a two-sentence summary that states the recommendation or main point up front; a background section of no more than four sentences; the main body as three to five short sections with bold headings; then next steps with owners and dates. Under 400 words. Plain American English, short paragraphs, no filler.

Use only facts from my notes. If a number, date, or name is missing, insert a marker in curly braces like {missing date} so I can find it. Where my notes contradict themselves, list the contradiction in a short 'to resolve' note at the end instead of picking one side.

Tip: Search the output for curly braces before sending; every one marks a fact the AI could not find in your notes.

The meeting just ended and you want to lock in what was agreed while everyone still remembers it the same way.

You are my executive assistant, and you write follow-up emails that keep commitments alive. Draft the follow-up for the meeting below.

My notes or the transcript: [PASTE NOTES OR TRANSCRIPT]
Who attended: [ATTENDEES AND ROLES]
Who the email goes to: [RECIPIENTS]
What I most want to happen next: [MY PRIORITY NEXT STEP]

Write an email of no more than 150 words with: a one-line thank you that references something specific from the discussion, not a generic opener; a recap of what we agreed in two or three bullets; the action items as a list with owner and due date; and a closing line that makes my priority next step easy to say yes to, by proposing a specific time or asking a single question.

Use the attendees' names as I wrote them. Do not add commitments that were not made in the meeting. If the notes do not show who owns an action, write 'owner to confirm' rather than assigning it. Ask me if you cannot tell what the meeting was about.

Tip: Send within an hour. If a transcript tool captured the meeting, paste the transcript and let the AI pull owners and dates from it directly.

Your draft is right but too long, and the reader will skim it on a phone.

You are a ruthless line editor. Cut my message to about half its current length while keeping every fact, number, name, date, and commitment.

Message: [PASTE YOUR MESSAGE]
Who will read it: [READER]
The one thing they must take away: [KEY TAKEAWAY]

Method: remove throat-clearing openers, hedges, repeated points, and adjectives that do not change the meaning. Merge sentences that say the same thing. Turn a list buried in a paragraph into bullets only if that makes it shorter. Keep my voice; do not make it stiffer or more formal than the original. Keep the greeting and sign-off if there was one.

Output: first the edited version, then the word count before and after, then a three-line list of anything you removed that I might want to put back, such as a courtesy line or a caveat. If the message contains a legal, medical, or contractual statement, leave those sentences exactly as written and tell me you did.

Tip: Run it twice if the first pass is still long. Paste the AI's version back and ask for another quarter cut with the same rules.

You need to tell a team or customers about a price increase, a policy change, a cancelled project, or a new process, and spin will make it worse.

You are a communications lead who writes change announcements people trust. Draft an announcement of a change that some readers will not like.

The change: [THE CHANGE]
Who it affects and how: [WHO IS AFFECTED AND HOW]
Why we are making it, the real reason: [REAL REASON]
When it takes effect: [EFFECTIVE DATE]
What readers need to do, if anything: [REQUIRED ACTIONS]
Where to send questions: [CONTACT OR CHANNEL]

Write it in this order: what is changing and when, in the first two sentences; why, in plain words with no spin; what it means for the reader, including the honest downside; what they need to do and by when; where to ask questions. Under 250 words. No corporate euphemisms such as 'rightsizing', 'streamlining', or 'exciting news'. Do not thank people for their patience. Do not claim benefits I did not list.

Then give me the three questions readers are most likely to ask, each with a suggested one-line answer, so I can prepare a short FAQ. If the reason I gave sounds like spin, tell me.

Tip: Have someone from the affected group read the draft before it goes out; the AI cannot know what the change feels like from the inside.

The email matters, you have rewritten it three times, and you want a second reader before you hit send.

You are a careful editor and a second pair of eyes before I hit send. Review my email and flag problems. Do not rewrite it unless I ask.

Email: [PASTE YOUR EMAIL]
Recipient and context: [RECIPIENT AND CONTEXT]
What I want to happen after they read it: [DESIRED RESULT]

Check for, in this order: 1) Is the ask clear and easy to find? 2) Anything that could read as blame, sarcasm, or passive aggression, quoted exactly. 3) Commitments or dates I am making, listed so I can confirm I mean them. 4) Missing information the recipient will have to write back to ask for. 5) Sentences that could be misread, with the two possible readings. 6) Typos, wrong names, and wrong dates. 7) Anything I should not put in writing at all, such as speculation about people, legal exposure, or confidential details.

Give me the findings as a short numbered list, most serious first, each with the exact quoted text and a one-line suggested fix. End with a one-word verdict: send, fix, or rethink.

Tip: Ask for the review only, then fix the email yourself. If you let the AI rewrite it, you lose your voice and may not notice what changed.