First thought
If work has only just switched a tool on, the useful question is "where does this help the job I have?" Name one slow task. Ask for questions, not a transformation. Then read what it tells you to leave out before you paste a real file.
First prompt
Highlighted [brackets] are the parts you replace. Only paste information you’re allowed to share with the tool you’re using.
The promptI do this job: [job title in plain words, e.g. "office administrator at a small clinic"].
I do this job: [job title in plain words, e.g. "office administrator at a small clinic"].
A task that eats time: [one real task].
Tools I'm allowed to use at work: [name them, or "I don't know yet"].
Suggest five questions I could ask a chat tool about that task.
For each question, say what I must not paste (customer details, staff details, passwords, health information, anything confidential).
Then write the first prompt I should try, with [BRACKETS] for the parts only I know.
Do not estimate hours saved or money saved. Do not suggest buying software.What good looks like
- The five questions are about your task, not a generic list of "AI use cases".
- Each one says what to leave out.
- The first prompt still has blanks, because it cannot know your files.
Next step
Other small things that help
- Explain a spreadsheet formula before you trust it
- Teach me this, then check I followed
- What did I miss in this plan?
Sources
- OpenAI, Prompt engineering guide Vendor documentation
- Anthropic, Prompt engineering overview Vendor documentation
- ICO, Guidance on AI and data protection Regulator guidance