Turn a Done-List Into a Status Update
Convert your scattered list of completed work into a clear weekly update for your manager or team.
Prompt
Turn the following list of things I did this week into a concise status update for {{audience}}. Group related items, lead with the most important outcomes, and keep it under 150 words. Flag anything that sounds like a blocker or needs a decision as a separate short section at the end. Don't inflate small tasks into achievements.
What I did:
{{done_list}}Fill in these placeholders
- {{audience}}
- {{done_list}}
How to use it
Jot your done-list in any messy form — fragments are fine. Review the output before sending: the grouping is usually right, but only you know which item actually mattered most this week.
Example use case
Writing the Friday update email in two minutes instead of twenty.
Why this prompt works
Status updates fail by listing activity instead of outcomes, and the fix is structural rather than stylistic. Grouping into shipped, in progress, and blocked forces every item into a category that means something to a reader, and the blocked section is the one your manager actually needs. Requiring plain outcomes stops the list becoming a defense of how busy you were.
What good output looks like
Three clear groups, outcomes rather than activity, blockers stated plainly with what you need to unblock them. If the blocked section is empty every single week, the update is not being honest with itself.
Common mistakes
- Padding the list to look productive. A short honest update reads as more competent than a long one.
- Hiding blockers, which is the single most useful thing in the update for whoever reads it.
- Describing tasks rather than results — 'attended three meetings' tells the reader nothing.
Variations worth trying
- Add 'flag anything that has been in progress for more than two weeks' to catch quiet stalls.
- Ask for a two-sentence version for a busy reader, with the detail underneath.
- Ask it to identify what you have not mentioned that a manager would ask about.
More prompts to try
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