First thought
You do not need an inbox system on day one. Take one email you keep rewriting, remove anything confidential, and ask for three lines: what happened, what you need, and by when. If that draft is useful, you have learned the habit. If it is nonsense, you have lost two minutes.
First prompt
Highlighted [brackets] are the parts you replace. Only paste information you’re allowed to share with the tool you’re using.
The promptRewrite the email below as three short lines I can edit:
Rewrite the email below as three short lines I can edit:
1. What happened, in one line.
2. What I need from the reader, in one line.
3. By when, or "no deadline" if I didn't give one.
Keep my meaning. Take out apologies, backstory and softener phrases. Use simple language an everyday person would understand. If the email is cross, make this version calm and factual. Do not add promises, dates or facts that are not in the email.
EMAIL:
"""
[paste the email you would have sent, with names and account numbers removed]
"""What good looks like
- You can see the ask in one glance.
- Nothing new was invented: no extra deadlines, refunds or blame.
- It still sounds like something you would send, after you change a few words.
Next step
Other small things that help
- A reply when you have been staring at the message
- The version someone can read in a lift
- Rewrite it so you do not sound cross
Sources
- OpenAI, Prompt engineering guide Vendor documentation
- Anthropic, Prompt engineering overview Vendor documentation
- ICO, Guidance on AI and data protection Regulator guidance