The Document
After this drill, you can produce a polished, professional document — memo, report, or proposal — using Claude as your writing partner.
Why this matters
Documents are currency in professional life. Every meeting needs a memo. Every decision needs a brief. Every project needs a proposal. AI doesn't replace your judgment about what to write — it handles the mechanical work of writing it well. This drill shows you the production workflow: you bring the substance, Claude produces the structure and language.
How to do it
- 1
Choose a real document you need to produce — not a practice exercise
A memo from a recent meeting. A project brief you've been putting off. A proposal for a decision that needs to be made. Real purpose makes better output.
- 2
Use the document production prompt below — fill in all five fields
The five fields: document type, purpose/decision, audience, key points you must include, and any constraints (length, tone, format).
- 3
Review the output as an editor, not a proofreader
Ask: Does this capture the substance correctly? Is the argument sound? Would the intended audience understand it? If not, use the reframe skills from Module 1.
- 4
Iterate once — make at least one substantive improvement
Every first draft has a weak section. Find it and use a follow-up prompt to strengthen it. The habit of iterating once is worth building explicitly.
The prompt
You are an experienced [ROLE — e.g. project manager, policy analyst, business consultant]. I need you to write a [DOCUMENT TYPE — e.g. project brief, executive memo, proposal, meeting summary]. Purpose: [What decision or action does this document need to enable?] Audience: [Who will read this? What do they already know? What do they need to understand?] Key points to include: - [Point 1] - [Point 2] - [Point 3] Constraints: [Length, tone, format, anything to avoid] Write the complete document now. Use professional formatting appropriate for this document type.
Success criteria
- ✓You produced a complete, professionally formatted document
- ✓The document is for a real purpose — not a fictional exercise
- ✓You iterated at least once to improve a weak section
- ✓You could send or use this document without significant revision
Common mistakes
Providing too little substance and expecting AI to invent it
→ AI produces structure and language. You provide the facts, decisions, and key points. If you have nothing to put in the "key points" field, you need to think more before prompting.
Proofreading instead of editing
→ Don't start by looking for typos. Start by asking: does this document do its job? Would the audience take the intended action? Get the substance right first.
Accepting the format without questioning it
→ Claude defaults to bullet points and headers. If your document needs flowing prose (an executive letter, a strategic narrative), specify that explicitly.