AI Company USAAPEX
Field Guide 02APEX by AI Company USA · Edition 1 · November 2026

The APEXPrompt Library.

Copy-paste prompts ordered the way an engagement runs: assess, train, reassess. Fill the brackets, run it, then check it.

18copy-paste prompts
03phases, plus one rule
01prompt that always runs last
STEP 01

Pick your phase

Start where your engagement is, or where your week is.

STEP 02

Fill the brackets

Replace every [BRACKET] with your own details.

STEP 03

Run it

Paste it into the AI tool you already pay for.

STEP 04

Check it

Finish with prompt 18 before anything leaves your hands.

01
Weeks 1 to 2 · 4 prompts

Assess

Know where you stand before you change anything.

01

Map my week

When to use

Before your first session, to see where AI can give you time back.

TipUse a real week, not an ideal one.

Prompt 01
Act as an operations analyst for a [ROLE] at a [TYPE OF BUSINESS].
Below is my calendar and task list for a typical week.

[PASTE CALENDAR AND TASKS]

1. Group the work into 8 to 12 recurring tasks.
2. For each task, estimate hours per week and how repeatable it is (high, medium, low).
3. Sort each task into a bucket: A (AI drafts), B (AI assists, I decide), C (owner only).
4. Return a table, then name the three tasks where AI would free the most time.

Ask me questions first if anything is unclear.
02

Inventory my decisions

When to use

To find the recurring decisions where better information would help most.

TipCorrect the list out loud. Your edits are the useful part.

Prompt 02
I run [BUSINESS] and I am responsible for [AREA].
List the decisions I likely make every week, month and quarter. For each one, show:
- what information I need to make it well
- where that information lives today
- how AI could prepare it for me
- the bucket: A, B or C

Then ask me five questions to correct your list before you finalize it.
03

Write my GOAL

When to use

At intake, to put success into your own words.

TipKeep it yours. A GOAL written by the AI is not your GOAL.

Prompt 03
Interview me to write my GOAL for an AI coaching engagement.
Ask one question at a time and wait for my answer. Cover:
- what I want to be able to do with AI in three months
- which part of my work it should change first
- how I will know it worked

After no more than eight questions, draft my GOAL in two or three sentences, in my words, with one result we can observe at the end.
04

Audit my AI tools

When to use

To see what you already pay for and what each tool is good at.

TipConfirm data settings in each tool's admin page, not from the AI's answer.

Prompt 04
Here are the AI tools and subscriptions my business pays for:
[LIST TOOLS AND PLANS]

For each one, tell me:
- what it is best at
- which of my tasks it fits: [PASTE TASK LIST FROM PROMPT 01]
- what data it should not see under our current setup

Then point out overlap, gaps and any tool we may not need. Flag anything you are unsure of instead of guessing.
02
Weeks 3 to 9 · 9 prompts

Train

Build the habits on your real work.

05

Write the prompt for me

When to use

Any time you have a rough ask and want a prompt you can reuse.

TipSave the good ones. A personal prompt library compounds.

Prompt 05
You are a prompt engineer working for a business owner. I will give you a rough request.

Rough request: [WHAT I WANT]

Ask me up to five questions about audience, purpose, format and limits. Then write a reusable prompt that:
- states the role and the task
- lists the context the AI needs
- marks every variable in [BRACKETS]
- describes what good output looks like

Return only the finished prompt.
06

Brief me in five minutes

When to use

A long document, thread or report needs your decision.

TipAsking where each fact appears makes checking fast.

Prompt 06
Read the material below and brief me as my chief of staff.

[PASTE DOCUMENT]

Give me:
1. The decision or action being asked of me, in one sentence
2. The three facts that matter most, each with where it appears
3. Risks and open questions
4. What happens if I do nothing

Keep it under 200 words. Quote the source for any number.
07

Draft in my voice

When to use

Replies and updates you write again and again.

TipRead it aloud before it goes. If it does not sound like you, say what is off.

Prompt 07
Here are three messages I wrote that sound like me:
[PASTE 3 SAMPLES]

Describe my writing style in five bullet points. Then draft a [TYPE OF MESSAGE] to [RECIPIENT] about [TOPIC].
The main point is: [MAIN POINT]

Match my length and tone. Do not add claims or promises I did not give you.
08

Pressure-test a decision

When to use

Before you commit to something that is hard to undo.

TipThis is Bucket B. The AI argues; you decide.

Prompt 08
I am about to decide: [DECISION]
My reasoning: [WHY]

Act as a skeptical board member.
1. Make the strongest case against it.
2. Run a pre-mortem: it is a year from now and this failed. List the three most likely reasons.
3. Name what I would need to see to be confident.

Do not soften the critique. Do not make the decision for me.
09

Meeting to action items

When to use

Right after a meeting, with notes or a transcript.

TipSend the table, not the transcript.

Prompt 09
Here are the notes from a meeting on [DATE] with [ATTENDEES]:
[PASTE NOTES OR TRANSCRIPT]

Return:
- decisions made
- action items as a table: task, owner, due date
- open questions, with who should answer each one

Only list what is in the notes. Mark anything you inferred with (inferred).
10

Turn a process into a checklist

When to use

A task lives in one person's head and needs to live in the business.

TipHave the person who does the work review it first.

Prompt 10
Below is how [PERSON] does [PROCESS], in their words:
[PASTE DESCRIPTION OR TRANSCRIPT]

Write a step-by-step checklist a new team member could follow. For each step, add the tool used, a common mistake and how to tell it was done right.
Flag any step that needs a judgment call so a person signs it off.
11

Build a one-page tool

When to use

You need a small calculator, checklist or tracker today.

TipTest it with sample numbers you already know the answer to.

Prompt 11
Build a single-file HTML page that works offline in a browser. No external libraries, no network calls, and no data leaves the page.

It should: [WHAT IT DOES]
Inputs: [FIELDS]
Output: [RESULT]

Keep the design clean and printable. Explain in three sentences how to open and use it.
12

Delegate to an agent, with stop points

When to use

Handing a multi-step task to an AI agent.

TipWrite the stop points before you write the goal.

Prompt 12
You are working on behalf of [BUSINESS] as a [ROLE].
Goal: [OUTCOME]
You may use: [TOOLS OR CONNECTORS]

Plan first, and show me the plan before you act.
Stop and ask me before you:
- send anything to a client or vendor
- spend money or change a subscription
- touch [SENSITIVE DATA]

When finished, report what you did, what you did not do and anything I should check.
13

Train my team

When to use

Rolling out a new AI habit to your people.

TipTeach with your own example, not a generic one.

Prompt 13
I want my team of [NUMBER AND ROLES] to start using AI for [TASK].

Design a 30-minute session: a short why, a live example using our own work, one exercise per person and a five-question check for understanding.
Include the rules they must follow about data and review. Write it so I can teach it myself.
03
Weeks 10 to 12 · 4 prompts

Reassess

Measure what changed and plan what is next.

14

Before and after

When to use

At the checkpoint and at the end, to see what really changed.

TipTrack one task honestly instead of ten roughly.

Prompt 14
Here is how I handled [TASK] before: [TIME, STEPS, QUALITY]
Here is how I handle it now with AI: [TIME, STEPS, QUALITY]

Compare the two in a table: time, steps, quality and risk.
Then tell me what is still manual that could move to Bucket A or B, and what should stay with me.
Use only the numbers I gave you.
15

Write my progress note

When to use

Before your REval, to put the engagement in your own words.

TipSpecific examples beat adjectives.

Prompt 15
Help me write a progress note in three parts:
1. Where I started: [BASELINE NOTES]
2. Where I said I wanted to be: [MY GOAL]
3. Where I am now: [WHAT CHANGED]

Ask me for examples wherever my answers are vague. Keep it factual and under 250 words. Do not add results I did not describe.
16

Plan the next 90 days

When to use

At the end of an engagement, to keep building.

TipOne priority you finish beats three you start.

Prompt 16
Based on this progress note:
[PASTE NOTE]

Draft a 90-day plan with three priorities. For each one: the outcome, the first step this week, who owns it and how I will know it is working.
Keep the whole plan on one page. End with three questions that test what I may have missed.
17

Review how my team uses AI

When to use

Each quarter, to keep AI use safe and useful.

TipIf the answer is “none yet”, writing the rules is change number one.

Prompt 17
Here is how my team uses AI today: [TOOLS, TASKS, PEOPLE]
Review it against these rules: [OUR AI RULES, OR "NONE YET"]

List what is working, where data may be at risk and where decisions may be going to AI that should stay with people.
Suggest no more than five changes, in order of importance.
04
Every time · 1 prompt

Always last

Nothing AI-made leaves your hands without it.

18

Check before you trust

When to use

Before anything AI-made leaves your hands.

TipRun it in a fresh chat, so the AI is not grading its own work.

Prompt 18
Act as a careful checker, not a cheerleader. Review the draft below line by line. Do not rewrite it.

[PASTE DRAFT]

List:
- every factual claim, number and name, and whether the source supports it
- anything that sounds certain but may be wrong
- anything missing that the reader will expect
- any sentence that promises more than we can deliver

End with one verdict: safe to send, send after fixes, or do not send.
No prompt matches that.Try a shorter word, or clear the search.
Rules of the road

Five rules. Every prompt.

01

Mind the data

Client, financial and personal data go only into tools approved for them. When unsure, leave it out.

02

Owners decide

Bucket C stays with a person. AI can inform those decisions, never make them.

03

Check the source

Numbers, names and quotes get checked against where they came from.

04

Say when AI helped

Disclose AI use wherever it matters to the reader.

05

Finish with 18

Every draft runs through Check before you trust before it leaves.

Index

All 18 at a glance.

No.PromptPhaseWhen to use
01Map my weekAssessBefore your first session, to see where AI can give you time back.
02Inventory my decisionsAssessTo find the recurring decisions where better information would help most.
03Write my GOALAssessAt intake, to put success into your own words.
04Audit my AI toolsAssessTo see what you already pay for and what each tool is good at.
05Write the prompt for meTrainAny time you have a rough ask and want a prompt you can reuse.
06Brief me in five minutesTrainA long document, thread or report needs your decision.
07Draft in my voiceTrainReplies and updates you write again and again.
08Pressure-test a decisionTrainBefore you commit to something that is hard to undo.
09Meeting to action itemsTrainRight after a meeting, with notes or a transcript.
10Turn a process into a checklistTrainA task lives in one person's head and needs to live in the business.
11Build a one-page toolTrainYou need a small calculator, checklist or tracker today.
12Delegate to an agent, with stop pointsTrainHanding a multi-step task to an AI agent.
13Train my teamTrainRolling out a new AI habit to your people.
14Before and afterReassessAt the checkpoint and at the end, to see what really changed.
15Write my progress noteReassessBefore your REval, to put the engagement in your own words.
16Plan the next 90 daysReassessAt the end of an engagement, to keep building.
17Review how my team uses AIReassessEach quarter, to keep AI use safe and useful.
18Check before you trustAlways lastBefore anything AI-made leaves your hands.
APEX coaching

Prompts are the start.

APEX coaching builds the judgment around them: what to hand to AI, what to keep, and how to check the result, on your own work.

Inquire about APEX Prefer email? taylor@aicompanyusa.com