Which task should I hand over first?
You have written the same kind of reply fifty times. Each time you open an old one, change the name and the dates, and hope you did not forget anything. It is not hard, it is just yours, every week.
Choose something you do every week in roughly the same way: quotes, follow-ups, booking confirmations, posts, a client reply you have written fifty times. It should be something you could do yourself in ten to thirty minutes, so you can tell at once whether the result holds.
What does a good handover contain?
Five lines. They take five minutes to write the first time and save time every time after that.
- The task in one sentence: what, for whom, how often.
- Material: what the agent may start from.
- A good example: a real result you are happy with. This is the line that matters most.
- Limits: what must never appear, and what to ask about instead of guessing.
- Hand-back: the format you want and what happens next.
Handover builder
Fill in five lines. Get the instruction, ready to paste.
I want to hand over a task to you. Task: [one sentence] How often: [every week / each time a client writes] Material you may use: [what] Here is an example of a result I am happy with: [paste] This must never appear: [list] If anything is unclear, ask me instead of guessing. Make a first draft. Then we go through it together and I tell you what to change. Save what we agree as an instruction for this task, so you get it right next time.
How do I adjust so the agent learns?
Say what was wrong and why, in one sentence. “Too formal, I write ‘Hi’, not ‘Dear client’.” Then ask the agent to put it into the instruction for the task. Do that three times and the draft is usually close to what you would have written.
Say what was right too. An agent that hears the first paragraph was good will keep it.
What should I always check myself?
- Numbers, names, dates and prices. The agent can write something that sounds right and is wrong.
- Anything someone else sees. Sending, publishing and booking are yours until you have learned to trust the task.
- Personal data. Do not paste more about a client than the task needs.
What becomes possible?
Every task you can describe can become a small tool. Then you stop doing the thing by hand and start building something that does it.
- A quote generator where the client answers three questions and gets a proposal in your voice.
- An intake form that asks the right questions before the first meeting.
- A calculator that shows what your service is worth to the client.
Here are my repeating tasks: [list]. Which of them would work better as a small tool, like a form, a calculator or a template, than as something I do by hand? Sketch three, with what each would do for me and how long it would take to build.
Questions people ask
How many corrections before it is good?
Expect two or three rounds. The better the example, the fewer rounds.
Can the agent do it without me looking?
It can be built, but start by reviewing every result. When it has held up several times in a row you can let more run on its own.
Sources
Who is writing this
I am Nathaniel, a commercial operator. For twenty years, across four continents and more than fifteen ventures, I have taken research and young companies from idea to customer. Two KTH spin-offs reached joint development agreements with Fortune 500 partners. An indoor farm sold its full production within about ninety days and ended in a joint venture exit. This year I am a commercial expert for the European Innovation Council's Tech to Market programme. Now I build agents, because the hard part of new technology is rarely the technology. It is getting people to want it and use it.
Want to do this together?
In two hours I can build this with you: Hand over a task.