Ask better questions of a spreadsheet
A practical prompt-led workflow to create an analysis brief with definitions and validation checks, with a clear brief and a focused quality check.
What you will make
This Batala playbook helps you create an analysis brief with definitions and validation checks. Use it when you want to ask better questions of a spreadsheet. The workflow separates the brief, the draft, and the review so you can see where the result comes from. You can use the prompts as written after replacing the bracketed details, or adapt them to a similar task.
Prepare your inputs
Gather a description of columns, the business question, and known data limitations. Specific source material makes the output easier to check. Remove details that are not needed for this task, label anything uncertain, and say which source is authoritative if your materials disagree. You can begin with a small sample rather than uploading a whole archive.
Help me prepare a brief for this task: Ask better questions of a spreadsheet. My inputs are: [paste a description of columns, the business question, and known data limitations]. My audience is [audience]. My constraints are [constraints]. List the information needed to produce an analysis brief with definitions and validation checks. Separate what I supplied from what is missing. Ask only about gaps that materially affect the result. Do not invent missing facts.
Build the first version
The working method is to define the unit of analysis, time period, denominator, and desired comparison before calculating. Run the prompt below in the same conversation as your brief. If you use a different conversation, paste the approved brief again. Keep the first version small enough to inspect closely before asking for additional variations.
Using the approved brief above, define the unit of analysis, time period, denominator, and desired comparison before calculating. Create an analysis brief with definitions and validation checks. Use my supplied material as the factual basis. Mark assumptions and unresolved questions explicitly. Keep the result practical for [audience] and within [time, length, or format limits]. If you cannot access a source or perform an action, say so instead of claiming it is complete.
Review the part that matters
Before using the draft, do not treat blank cells as zero or infer causation from a chart. Review the original inputs alongside the output. A useful review identifies a specific problem and a concrete correction, rather than simply asking whether the draft looks good. For information that changes over time, open an authoritative source and record when you checked it.
Review your draft against the original brief. In particular, do not treat blank cells as zero or infer causation from a chart. Return a table with issue, supporting evidence, proposed correction, and anything I must verify myself. Do not present assumptions as verified facts. Then provide a revised version with those corrections applied.
Make it reusable
Save the approved an analysis brief with definitions and validation checks with the brief that produced it. Note which inputs changed the result most. On the next run, replace those inputs rather than copying old facts into a new task. Keep a short record of what you checked so another person can understand why the output is ready to use.
Turn this completed task into a reusable checklist for next time. Include the inputs I need, the sequence of steps, the quality check specific to this task, and the definition of done. Keep variable details in [brackets]. Base the checklist on the actual workflow above, not on actions we did not perform.
A simple finish line
You are ready to use this resource when you have an analysis brief with definitions and validation checks, the important facts match your source material, and remaining uncertainties are visible. If a reader still cannot tell what to do next, make the output smaller and more concrete. The goal is a useful artifact you can review, not the longest possible AI response.
Keep the full guide handy.
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