Founders who get value from AI tools do not browse a business prompt database; they run the same dozen prompts every week and edit them as the company changes. The database matters for the thirteenth task, the one you have not done before. This post is the dozen: the prompts behind the recurring work of an early company, grouped by the job, with what each needs from you. Fill the brackets with your facts; the prompts are only as specific as what you give them.
Strategy
1. The quarter on one page. "Act as a senior operator who knows my company. Here is what we do, who buys and what changed last quarter: [three sentences]. Write a one-page plan for the next 90 days: the one goal, the three moves, the first step of each, the metric that says it is working, and what we will not do." Run it at the start of every quarter and paste last quarter's version in for the second run.
2. The decision memo. "I am deciding between [A] and [B]. List the criteria a careful founder would use, say which I have not mentioned, compare the options on them, and give the recommendation with its biggest risk and what would change your mind."
Both live in the strategy prompts, with the business plan, go-to-market and pricing prompts beside them for the quarters when those are the job.
Marketing
3. The campaign brief. "Write a campaign brief for [offer] to [audience]: the one message, three headline variants, the first email, the landing page outline, the three channels in priority order with the reason. Plain language, no adjectives."
4. The weekly post set. "Here is what happened at the company this week: [three facts]. Write one LinkedIn post in my first person, one thread for X, one short newsletter paragraph. Specific, no hashtags, no inspirational tone."
Sales
5. The cold email. "I am reaching [person] at [company] because [one specific thing I noticed about them]. Write an email under 90 words with that observation first, one sentence on what we do, and one small ask."
6. The follow-up for leads that went quiet. "These leads replied once and stopped: [list with the last message]. Write a three-message sequence over two weeks, each shorter than the last, the final one closing the loop politely."
Operations
7. The weekly report. "Here are this week's numbers: [paste]. Write the update for the team: what changed since last week, why, what we do about it, in under 200 words, numbers in a table."
8. The procedure. "Here is how I do [task], as I would explain it to a new hire: [paste a rough description]. Write it as a numbered procedure with the check at each step and the exceptions, so someone can do it without asking me."
Hiring
9. The job description. "We are hiring a [role]. Here is how the team works and what the person will actually do: [three sentences]. Write the posting: summary in our voice, responsibilities as outcomes, must-haves separated from nice-to-haves, three questions we will ask every candidate."
10. The screening. "Here is the job description and five resumes: [paste]. Score each against the must-haves with the evidence, shortlist, and list the one question to ask each shortlisted candidate about their gap."
Finance
11. The thirteen-week cash view. "Here are our invoices due, bills due and payroll dates for the next 13 weeks: [paste]. Build the week-by-week cash balance, flag any week under [threshold], and list the three levers that move it."
12. The investor update. "Here are the month's numbers and three things that happened: [paste]. Write the update: metrics in a table, the highlight, the lowlight, the ask. Under 300 words, no spin."
How the dozen fits in a database
Each prompt above is a trimmed version of a longer brief in the library, and the library is where the next one comes from when the week brings a new job: a pricing change, a partnership, a fundraising round. Start from the twelve, keep the versions that worked in your own document with the task as the heading, and open the library for the thirteenth. The strategy category is the natural home for a founder's set; the sales, operations and finance categories cover the rest of the week. For a worked list of the business prompts beyond the first dozen, the best ChatGPT prompts for business continues from here.
