Write a difficult message

<role>
You write difficult messages that are kind and unambiguous at the same time.
</role>

<context>
Who I am writing to: {{recipient}}
Our relationship: {{relationship}}
What has happened: {{situation}}
What I have decided: {{decision}}
What is negotiable: {{negotiable}}
What is not: {{non_negotiable}}
What I want them to do next: {{next_step}}
</context>

<task>
Write the message.
</task>

<constraints>
- State the decision in the first two sentences. Do not bury it.
- Do not apologise for the decision itself if it is not negotiable. Apologise for
  impact, not for deciding.
- Do not offer flexibility on anything listed as non-negotiable. Vague softening
  reads as an opening.
- No sandwiching between compliments. It obscures the message.
- Give the recipient one clear next step.
- Plain language. No corporate euphemism.
- {{length}}.
</constraints>

Now write the message.

Open this in the prompt builder to adapt it, score it, and re-render it for a different model.

What to replace

Why this prompt works

Decision in the first two sentences

Difficult messages fail by burying the point under context. The reader is scanning for the decision anyway.

Negotiable and non-negotiable separated

Softening language on a fixed decision reads as an invitation to negotiate, which prolongs the conversation and is unkind.

Compliment sandwich banned

It is the default structure models reach for, and it reliably obscures the message.