How to write a clear brief for AI or a colleague
A clear brief covers four things: the outcome you want, the context the other person or AI needs, the limits to work within and what a good result looks like. Put the outcome in your first sentence. If you cannot write it yet, decide what you want before handing the task over.
Why is briefing worth practising?
A lot of everyday work is asking someone else to do something: prompting an assistant for a first draft, handing a task to a colleague, asking a freelancer for a quote. That share may grow. In Microsoft’s 2025 Work Trend Index, business leaders said they expect their teams to be training and managing AI agents within five years.
A vague request comes back as a generic answer or a round of questions, and the time you saved goes on fixing it. Our guide to skills to learn in the age of AI explains why we think this skill is gaining value.
What does a vague request look like next to a clear one?
Suppose you run a café and want a notice about new opening hours. A first attempt might be:
“Can you write something about our new opening hours for the website?”
Whoever writes it has to guess the hours, the length, the tone and who will read it. Here is a clearer brief:
“Write a short notice for our café website announcing new opening hours from Monday 2 November: 7am to 4pm on weekdays and 8am to 2pm at weekends. Most readers are regulars, and some will be disappointed that we no longer stay open until 6pm, so explain briefly that evenings were quiet and we are starting a weekend breakfast menu instead. Keep it under 80 words, friendly but not gushing, with no exclamation marks. A good version is one a regular could read in ten seconds and know when to come in.”
Swipe the table sideways to read both columns. With a keyboard, focus the table and use the arrow keys.
| Part | In the example |
|---|---|
| Outcome | A short website notice announcing the new hours and the date they start |
| Context | Readers are regulars; some will miss the evenings; evenings were quiet; a weekend breakfast menu is coming |
| Limits | Under 80 words, friendly but not gushing, no exclamation marks |
| A good result | A regular can read it in ten seconds and know when to come in |
The clear version is longer, but each extra sentence answers a question the writer would otherwise have to ask or guess.
What goes into each part of a brief?
The outcome
Name what you want back and what it is for: “a three-line summary I can paste into an email to the board”, not “thoughts on this report”. Could someone tell from that sentence alone when they have finished?
The context
Give the facts the other person cannot guess, such as who the audience is, what has been tried and why the task exists. Leave out history that would not change the result. Ask yourself what a capable newcomer would get wrong without being told.
The limits
Length, deadline, budget, tone, format and anything that must or must not appear. Be precise: “make it professional” means different things to different people, but “formal, no jokes, under 100 words” does not.
What a good result looks like
Describe how you will judge it, or show an example of the style you want. “Good” is the vaguest word in most briefs, so replace it with a test, such as “a customer with no technical background could follow it”.
What changes when the brief is for a person?
A colleague brings their own judgement, so tell them which decisions are theirs. Give the reason behind each limit too: if they know why the notice must stay under 80 words, they can handle a case you did not foresee. Agree when you will check in, and invite questions before they start rather than after.
Many briefs are spoken. In a meeting, give the outcome, then the deadline, then the one thing they must not get wrong, in about 30 seconds, and let them ask for the rest. Our articulate speaking guide has a short exercise for explaining one idea aloud.
What changes when the brief is for an AI?
Don’t assume an assistant has the background it needs, even if it can search the web or remember earlier chats. Paste the material it should work from, name the audience and show an example when style matters. For a bigger task, ask it to list its questions before it starts, then answer them.
Read what comes back as carefully as you would a colleague’s draft, because you are responsible for anything you send. When a result misses, the brief is often why, so check which of the four parts was thin before rewriting the whole request.
Practise with one task this week
- Choose a task you would normally explain loosely, such as an email to draft, a job for a colleague or a question for an assistant.
- Write the outcome, context, limits and test for a good result, one sentence each.
- Read the outcome sentence to someone else. If they cannot say what you want back, rewrite it.
- Send the brief. When the result arrives, note which part, if any, was missing, and fix it next time.
Play: tighten the brief
Five lines from real-looking briefs. Pick the word that makes each one clear.
Clear brief
1 / 5The deadline is ____: the client launches on Monday.
Check the answer
Fixed. It means it can’t move. Flexible means it can change, and optional means it isn’t required.
Keep the summary ____: one paragraph, no background.
Check the answer
Brief. Thorough means covering everything, and elaborate means detailed and complicated.
Leave out jargon; the readers are ____, not engineers.
Check the answer
Laypeople. Laypeople are people without expert knowledge of a subject. Specialists and insiders already know the field.
Say which points are ____ and which are nice to have.
Check the answer
Non-negotiable. It means they must be included. Incidental means minor, and redundant means no longer needed.
The first draft was ____, so I asked for one clear recommendation.
Check the answer
Noncommittal. It means avoiding a clear position. Decisive means firm and clear, and persuasive means convincing.
Your score
Where does word choice come in?
Most of a brief’s precision comes from facts and requirements: the dates, the hours, the word limit, the decision you need. Word choice helps at the edges. “Short” could mean a line or a page; “under 80 words” cannot. “Tentative” tells a reader a date is not yet settled, where “planned” suggests it is.
If you want to work on that part, arcoco, our vocabulary game for iPhone and Android, gives you practice with word meanings and with choosing the word that fits a sentence. It is optional; everything above works without it.
It does not review your briefs or prompts, and we have not established that playing improves how you write or speak at work. Read how the games work and what is free on each platform.