Turn a Long AI Prompt Into a Clear Task Contract
A long prompt can still leave the most important instruction unclear. A task contract is a short statement of the input, the permitted transformation, the required output and the checks that define completion. Use it when repeated revisions keep drifting from your goal.
Name the transformation
Compare “Improve this” with “Rewrite this public event announcement in plain English while preserving the date, venue and registration link.” The second instruction tells the assistant what may change and what must survive. Add the intended reader and a practical length limit if they matter.
For a fictional notice, list the facts separately: Saturday, 10:00, West Hall, registration required. Supply the actual notice below a clear input marker. Do not include real personal information merely to make the example feel realistic.
Specify the output shape
Ask for a headline, a two-paragraph announcement and a short checklist of preserved facts. If a fact is missing from the input, require a question or an unknown marker rather than a completion. Explain whether suggestions should appear inside the copy or in a separate editor note.
A useful prompt ending is: “Before returning the final copy, check every listed fact against the input. Do not replace the registration URL or invent accessibility arrangements.” This describes a check, but you must still perform your own comparison.
Test with one controlled revision
Change one requirement at a time. If the tone is wrong, adjust the tone instruction without also changing the audience, length and structure. Save the previous version so you can tell what the new instruction affected.
Accept the output only after the facts, links and requested format match. A task contract reduces ambiguity; it does not make an assistant's self-check reliable enough to replace editorial review.
Worked example: a public workshop announcement
Use this fictional source notice: “The community sketching workshop starts Saturday at 10:00 in West Hall. Bring a notebook. Registration closes Thursday. The notice does not state a price.” The task is to rewrite the notice for first-time visitors, not to invent a fuller event.
A useful task contract could read:
Input: the fictional notice below. Audience: first-time adult visitors. Transformation: rewrite in plain English. Output: one headline and two short paragraphs, followed by a preserved-facts checklist. Keep Saturday, 10:00, West Hall, notebook and Thursday unchanged. Do not add a calendar date, price, booking URL, accessibility claim or refreshments. Mark missing information as not provided.
Check the contract against a tempting mistake
“Join our free workshop this Saturday, with all supplies provided” sounds inviting, but changes two facts: the price is absent and the source asks readers to bring a notebook. A polished tone does not repair those changes. The acceptable rewrite must retain the supplied facts and leave the price unknown.
| Check | Expected evidence |
|---|---|
| Time and location | Saturday, 10:00, West Hall |
| Preparation | Bring a notebook |
| Deadline | Thursday |
| Missing details | Price, exact date and booking link remain unprovided |
Revise one boundary at a time
If the answer misses the deadline, point to that specific failure and request a revision that preserves the rest. Do not add unrelated style instructions while diagnosing a factual mistake. Keep the source, prompt version and response together so you can tell which change improved the result.
For a real announcement, ask the organiser for missing details before publishing. This exercise demonstrates instruction design with invented material; it is not evidence that a particular assistant will always follow the contract.
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