Page 186 · Module 08, Decide with Confidence · this screen continues that page
All 108 frameworksThe DECIDE Framework
A structured six-step process for any decision that matters
The prompt
Copy & paste readyLabelsReplace theseSwap the role below
Pro tip, from the book
The step most people skip is Establish defining criteria before looking at options. When you evaluate options without stated criteria, you unconsciously build the criteria around your preferred option. Writing criteria first makes the evaluation honest. If your preferred option scores poorly against honest criteria, that is the most valuable output from this framework.
Who should run this prompt
Module role profileWho should stress-test your most important decisions? Most bad decisions were not obviously bad at the time — they had a good first-order case and a hidden second-order cost. The roles on this page are designed to surface what you cannot see from inside your own reasoning. Some will challenge your logic. Some will challenge your assumptions. One will challenge whether you are even asking the right question.
Choose any role to drop it into the prompt above. Only the highlighted opening clause changes — the rest of the prompt stays exactly as printed.
◆◆◆◆◆ → ◆ seniority, board level down to specialist◈ outside the organisation
How to make any role sharper
- Add years of experience: "...with 15 years in enterprise SaaS" produces different depth than just the title.
- Add what they care most about: "You care most about [X]" shapes every word of the output.
- Add their communication style: "Be direct. Flag risks first. No jargon." changes the tone entirely.
Use this when
The problem it solvesYou are going in circles on an important decision. You have information but can't reach clarity. The same arguments keep coming up. You need a process to move from deliberation to decision.
How the framework works
From the printed pageThe DECIDE framework, developed in decision science, is a six-step structured decision process: Define the problem (what exactly are you deciding?), Establish criteria (what does a good decision look like?), Consider alternatives (what are all the realistic options?), Identify the best option (evaluate alternatives against criteria), Develop and implement (commit and plan), Evaluate the outcome (review after the fact). Its value is in making implicit decision-making explicit surfacing the criteria and alternatives that are often left unstated, which is where most poor decisions hide.
The method, in four moves
Do these in orderDefine the decision in one sentence before doing anything else ambiguous definition is the root of most decision paralysis.
Write your criteria before generating options criteria set after options are considered are reverse-engineered rationalisations.
Generate at least three alternatives binary choices limit thinking.
Set a decision date before starting the process. Open-ended decision timelines produce no decisions. If you're writing criteria after you've already generated the options, you're not deciding you're justifying a choice you already made. The order matters as much as the steps: criteria first, or the whole process becomes theater around a decision you'd already reached.
Where the framework comes from
Decision science methodology — DECIDE framework, Kristina Guo and others
Pairs well with
As printed with this frameworkModule 08 — Decide with Confidence
Make better decisions faster, with less regret.
10 frameworks, printed on pages 185–204.
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