Help me write or revise a [DOCUMENT TYPE] for [AUDIENCE]. The document's purpose is [PURPOSE], the required tone is [TONE], and the source material or current draft is below. [SOURCE MATERIAL OR DRAFT] First, identify the document's central decision, request, or conclusion in one sentence. Then create a document that makes the needed information easy for this audience to find and act on. Preserve the intended meaning of the source material; improve organization, clarity, and wording without changing commitments, scope, numbers, dates, quoted language, or legal/technical claims. Produce:
1. A proposed title and a 2- to 4-sentence executive summary or opening, appropriate to the document type.
2. A complete draft in the conventional structure for a [DOCUMENT TYPE], using informative section names and logical heading order.
3. A short "Open items" list for missing facts, decisions, approvals, owners, dates, or evidence. Do not fill these gaps with plausible details.
4. A concise change log that distinguishes structural changes, wording changes, and any ambiguity you preserved rather than resolved.
Use active voice when it makes accountability clearer, but do not erase necessary caveats. If the material supports an argument, connect each recommendation to its supporting evidence and distinguish evidence from interpretation. For policies or procedures, state trigger, owner, action, exception, and recordkeeping requirements where applicable. Before answering, self-check that every factual claim and number appears in the source material, and flag any sentence whose meaning may have changed during revision. Ask up to 3 clarifying questions only if a required input is missing.Fill in
| Placeholder | What to enter | Example |
|---|---|---|
| [DOCUMENT TYPE] | Enter the kind of document you need, such as a proposal, report, brief, or policy. | internal project proposal |
| [AUDIENCE] | Describe who will read the document and what they need from it. | the operations director and finance manager |
| [PURPOSE] | State the decision, action, or understanding the document should create. | approve a three-month pilot for a new customer-support triage process |
| [TONE] | Describe the intended voice, formality, and level of directness. | direct, evidence-led, and cautious about costs |
| [SOURCE MATERIAL OR DRAFT] | Paste your notes, evidence, outline, or current draft. | Support received 1,240 tickets in May. Forty percent were password resets. The proposed pilot uses an existing help-center tool. Training estimate: 12 staff hours. No vendor quote has been received yet. |
How to use
- Paste the prompt, then include all source notes and mark any text that must remain unchanged.
- Check the Open items list before sharing the draft; it identifies gaps that polished prose can hide.
- Compare the change log with your original if the document includes commitments, dates, money, or technical requirements.
- Follow up with: "Create a redline-style table showing the original wording, your revision, and the reason for each material change."
Variations
Rewrite a draft
Use this when the document is complete in substance but difficult to read.
Revise the draft below for [AUDIENCE] while keeping its meaning, facts, numbers, dates, and commitments unchanged. The desired tone is [TONE]. Reorganize only when it improves the reader's ability to find the main point, decision, evidence, and next action. Return a clean version plus a table of material edits. Flag contradictions, unsupported claims, and ambiguous ownership; do not resolve them by inventing facts. Ask up to 3 questions only if the audience or intended action is missing. [DRAFT]
Executive brief
Use this when leaders need a decision-ready summary rather than a long report.
Turn the notes below into a [LENGTH]-word executive brief for [AUDIENCE]. The decision requested is [DECISION]. Include: recommendation, context, 3 to 5 evidence-backed findings, options with tradeoffs, risks, and the exact next decision or approval needed. Make clear which claims come from the notes and which are assumptions. Do not add financial estimates, timelines, customer data, or outcomes not provided. Flag missing information that would materially affect the decision. [NOTES]
Policy procedure
Use this when documenting a repeatable internal process.
Draft a practical [POLICY OR PROCEDURE] for [AUDIENCE] using the source notes below. It must state purpose, scope, definitions, roles, step-by-step actions, exceptions, escalation path, records to retain, and review owner. Use "must" only for actual requirements stated in the notes; use "should" for guidance. Identify any vague rule that cannot be carried out consistently. Do not create legal, compliance, or security obligations that are not in the source material. [SOURCE NOTES]
Tips
- Give the audience a real decision or use case; a board brief, customer proposal, and internal procedure can use the same facts but need different structure.
- Separate non-negotiable text from editable prose before prompting, especially contract clauses, approved claims, figures, and quotations.
- Ask for an open-items list whenever notes are incomplete; drafting around a missing owner or approval can make a process unusable.
- For evidence-heavy documents, require claim-to-source mapping before you rely on a summary or recommendation.
FAQ
Can ChatGPT rewrite a document without changing its meaning?
It can be instructed to preserve meaning, but you should compare revisions where wording controls an obligation, number, timeline, or technical specification. The change log in this prompt makes that review faster.
What should I paste with the prompt?
Include the intended audience, purpose, existing draft or notes, evidence, and any wording that cannot change. Mark unresolved questions instead of leaving the model to infer them.
Can I use this for legal or regulatory documents?
It can organize and clarify supplied material, but it should not replace review by qualified counsel or the responsible compliance owner. Do not rely on it to create legal requirements from scratch.