# Ask AI to interview you before it starts

Original 5HO practice material. Fictional example. Reviewed 5 October 2026.

## Useful result

You'll finish with a clearer brief formed through short, answerable questions.

Sometimes you know the problem but cannot quite write the brief. Ask AI to interview you. One good question at a time is usually more useful than a form with 27 boxes.

## Set up

Allow 15–20 minutes with a chat assistant. Answer using the fictional situation below, or a task you are allowed to discuss.

## Practice input

Situation: a small team wants a better Friday handover. People miss the next action. The team uses email. You have not chosen a format, owner or review time.

## Do the task

1. Ask for one question at a time and a maximum of five.
2. Answer what you know; say Unknown when you do not know.
3. Review the final brief before asking for any finished handover template.

## Prompt

Interview me to define a better Friday handover. Ask one short question at a time, up to five, starting with who needs to act on it. Then summarise the goal, format, constraints and unresolved decisions.

## Refine

Separate my answers from your recommendations. Do not turn a suggestion about ownership into an agreed assignment.

## Expected checks

The interview should uncover a reader and next action. Unknown ownership must stay unknown until someone agrees to it; the final brief should be short enough to check.

## Save

Keep the agreed brief and unanswered questions. Use the brief to draft one handover, then test it with a colleague.

## Sources

- Writing clear prompts: https://help.openai.com/en/articles/10032626-prompt-engineering-best-practices-for-chatgpt