Outcome
By the end of this lesson you'll have a three-part meeting kit you can reuse every time: a five-minute prep brief before, a recap that captures decisions (not just topics) after, and an action list where every item has an owner and a date, or is clearly flagged as missing one.
Concept
The meeting itself is rarely the biggest cost. The cost is the scramble before ("what was this about again?") and the fog after ("who was doing that?").
Think of every meeting as a short loop with three handoffs:
- Brief — turn scattered background into a page you can read in two minutes.
- Recap — turn raw notes into what was decided, what's still open, and what's next.
- Commit — turn "next" into named owners and dates.
AI is good at all three because each one is compressing and restructuring text you already have. What it can't do is know what was actually agreed in the room. That's the part you supply, and it's why the recap always passes through you before anyone else sees it.
A word on recording: if you want to use a recording or transcript, make sure the people in the meeting know and your organization allows it. Many places have rules about this, so check yours first.
Build
Part 1: The prep brief. Gather what exists: the last email thread, notes from the previous meeting, the agenda. Then use this:
I have a [MEETING TYPE] with [WHO] about [TOPIC] on [DAY].
Background I have:
[PASTE EMAILS / NOTES / AGENDA]
Write a one-page brief with:
1. What this meeting is for, in one sentence
2. What was already decided or agreed before
3. What is still open or unclear
4. Anything I owe the other people
5. Three questions worth asking
Use only what I've pasted. If something is missing, list it under
"Gaps" instead of filling it in.
The "Gaps" line is a gift. It tells you what to look up before you walk in.
Part 2: Capture while it's fresh. You don't need perfect notes. Fragments are enough, as long as you jot down the moments a decision happened ("OK, going with option B"), a name next to a task, and any date mentioned.
Part 3: The decisions-first recap.
Here are my raw notes from a meeting:
[PASTE NOTES]
Attendees: [NAMES]
Write a recap with three headings:
- Decided (only things that were clearly agreed)
- Still open (discussed but not settled)
- Next steps (leave for the action list)
If something sounds like a decision but the notes don't make it clear it was
agreed, put it under "Still open" and note the uncertainty. Keep it under
[NUMBER] words.
The rule that matters is the one in the middle: discussion is not decision. A recap that blurs those is how people leave the same meeting with two different memories.
Part 4: The action list.
From this recap, list every action item in this format:
- Task — Owner: [NAME or "unassigned"] — Due: [DATE or "not set"]
Do not guess owners or dates. If the notes don't say, write "unassigned" or
"not set." After the list, give me a short "Needs clarifying" list of items
missing an owner or date.
Part 5: The follow-up message. Once you've fixed the recap and list, ask for a short email:
Turn this recap and action list into a brief follow-up email to the
attendees. Friendly, plain tone. Lead with the decisions, then the action
items, then one line asking people to reply if I've got anything wrong.
That last line invites correction and catches misunderstandings early, while they're still cheap.
A worked example
The notes and recap below are invented to illustrate the output shape.
Raw notes (illustrative): "Talked about the newsletter schedule. Going with every other Tuesday. Sam to check the sending tool. Maybe move to weekly later? Dana wants a draft template, no date."
Recap (illustrative): Decided: Newsletter goes out every other Tuesday. Still open: Whether to move to weekly later; no date to revisit. Action items: Check the sending tool — Owner: Sam — Due: not set. Draft a template — Owner: Dana (confirm) — Due: not set. Needs clarifying: Due dates for both items; whether Dana is the owner or only requested it.
Notice that the AI didn't invent a date and flagged a doubtful owner. That's the behavior your prompts should ask for.
Run
Try it now (5 minutes). Think of a meeting from the last two weeks. Write down five rough fragments of what you remember, including at least one decision and one task. Run the recap prompt, then the action-list prompt. See what lands under "Needs clarifying." That list is the follow-up you probably should have sent.
Guardrails: what a human must verify.
- Decisions. Confirm each item under "Decided" really was agreed, not just discussed or hoped for.
- Names and attribution. Never let a task or a statement be pinned on someone unless the notes support it. Check anything that quotes or paraphrases a person.
- Numbers and dates. Re-check budgets, deadlines, and figures against your source notes.
- Privacy. Don't paste confidential meeting content, personal details, or customer data into tools your organization hasn't approved. Redact first, or use an approved tool.
- Sensitive meetings (performance, legal, HR) stay out of this workflow unless you're sure the tool and process are approved.
Make it a habit. Run the brief ten minutes before, the recap within an hour after. Keep your three prompts in one note so you're never starting from scratch. After a few meetings, adjust: if your recaps always need the same fix, put it in the prompt.
Checkpoint.
- I have saved prompts for brief, recap, and action list.
- I ran the recap on a real or remembered meeting.
- Every action item has an owner and date, or is flagged.
- I know what my organization allows for recordings and transcripts.
- I read the recap against my own notes before sharing.
Meetings produce documents, so next up is Automate your documents and reports.