# Run a lessons-learned review: prompt chain Turn your notes on a finished project or event into a blame-free review, with what happened, what went well, what got in the way and why, one change to try for each problem, and the questions the notes cannot answer. **Made for:** Anyone who leads a team, a project or an event and wants to learn from it, such as a coordinator, a manager or a volunteer lead. ## Before you start Have these ready: - **What the project set out to do** (required): One line on what you were trying to achieve, with any target. - **What happened** (required): Paste your notes, a timeline or the messages, in any order. Include what went well and what did not. **How to use this chain** 1. Open a new chat in any AI assistant. 2. Copy the Step 1 prompt, replace every [PASTE HERE: ...] slot with your material, and send it. 3. Keep each answer: later steps ask you to paste it in. Run each step in the same chat or a new one; a new chat keeps steps from blurring together. 4. After a step that has a check, run the check before you move on. ## Step 1: Lay out what happened List the events in the order they happened, each quoted from the notes, with no judgment yet. Copy this prompt: ````text You are a calm note-taker who records what happened and nothing more. Your task is to list the events in the notes in the order they happened. What the project set out to do: [PASTE HERE: What the project set out to do] The notes: [PASTE HERE: What happened] Rules: - One row for each event. Quote the words about it from the notes, word for word, as short as you can. Do not reword. - In "When", write the date or time the notes give, or Not in the notes. - If the notes give two accounts of the same thing, write one row for each account and begin the second row's "What happened" with "Another account:". Do not decide which is right. - In "What happened", write the event as a plain fact. Do not say who was at fault, and do not use words such as failed, forgot, careless, mistake or should have. - Do not add an event the notes do not mention. Return one markdown table and nothing else: | When | What happened | Quote | ```` **You get back:** A table of the events in order, each quoted from the notes. **Check after Step 1: Every quote is word for word from the notes** Check by eye: Every quote in the Quote column appears word for word in the what happened. If it does not pass: Run the step once more, and add what was wrong to the end of the prompt. If it still does not pass, fix it by hand and make a note of it. ## Step 2: Sort what went well from what got in the way Pick out the events that mattered, mark each one, and say what in the situation made it happen. Copy this prompt: ````text You are a fair reviewer who looks for causes in the situation and never in a person. Your task is to sort the events that went well from the events that got in the way, and say why each happened. The events: [PASTE HERE: the answer from Step 1 (Lay out what happened)] Rules: - Skip an event that only sets the scene or only states the final result. Keep the ones that helped or hurt. - In "Effect", use exactly one of these: went well, got in the way. - In "Why it happened", write what in the situation made it happen, using only what the notes say, such as a missing step, a missing piece of information or a date that slipped. If the notes do not say, write exactly Not in the notes. If two accounts differ, say so and give both. - Do not name a person as the cause and do not guess at anyone's reasons. Do not use anything from outside the events. Return one markdown table and nothing else: | # | What happened | Effect | Why it happened | The Effect column must say exactly went well or got in the way. ```` **You get back:** A table that marks each event that mattered as went well or got in the way, with the cause from the notes. **Check after Step 2: Each effect is went well or got in the way** Check by eye: Every row of the table has one of "went well" or "got in the way" in the Effect column. If it does not pass: Run the step once more, and add what was wrong to the end of the prompt. If it still does not pass, fix it by hand and make a note of it. ## Step 3: Turn each problem into a change For every event that got in the way, write one change to try, a role to own it and a way to tell it worked. Copy this prompt: ````text You are a practical coach who turns a problem into one small change. Your task is to write one change to try for each event that got in the way. The sorted events: [PASTE HERE: the answer from Step 2 (Sort what went well from what got in the way)] Rules: - One row for each event marked "got in the way", in the same order. Do not write a row for an event that went well. - In "Change to try", write one action a person could do, starting with a verb. Do not write advice such as "communicate better", "be more careful" or "plan more". - In "Owner (a role)", write a role named in the notes, such as a lead or coordinator. Do not use a person's name. If the notes name no fitting role, write Not decided. - In "How we will know", write something that can be seen or counted next time. - If the cause is Not in the notes, the change is to find out why before choosing one. - Do not put a number, date or name in a change unless it is in the events above. - If nothing got in the way, write one row with None found in every cell. Return one markdown table and nothing else: | # | What got in the way | Change to try | Owner (a role) | How we will know | ```` **You get back:** A table with one change, one owner role and one way to know for each problem. **Check after Step 3: Every change has an owner and a way to know** Check by eye: Every row of the table has something written in "Change to try", "Owner (a role)" and "How we will know" (a blank or a dash does not count). If it does not pass: Run the step once more, and add what was wrong to the end of the prompt. If it still does not pass, fix it by hand and make a note of it. ## Step 4: Write the review Put the summary, what went well, the changes and the open questions in one short review a team can read together. Copy this prompt: ````text You are a facilitator who writes up a review so a team can read it together without anyone feeling blamed. Your task is to write the lessons-learned review from the material below. What the project set out to do: [PASTE HERE: What the project set out to do] The sorted events: [PASTE HERE: the answer from Step 2 (Sort what went well from what got in the way)] The changes: [PASTE HERE: the answer from Step 3 (Turn each problem into a change)] The notes: [PASTE HERE: What happened] Rules: - Start with one line that begins "Summary:" and has two sentences: what the project set out to do and how it ended, then the main things that made it harder. - Under "What went well", write one bullet for each event marked went well. If there are none, write "- None found." - Under "What got in the way", write one table row for each change, with the problem, why it happened, the change, the owner role and how we will know. Keep the wording of the changes. - Under "Questions the notes do not answer", write up to three questions, each ending with a question mark, about causes the notes leave open. If there are none, write "- None found." - Refer to people only by role or as "the team". Do not say anyone failed, forgot or should have done something. - Use only facts and numbers from the notes. Do not add a number. - End with exactly this line: Check this draft with the people who were there before you share it. Return markdown in this form and nothing else: Summary: (two sentences) ## What went well (one bullet for each) ## What got in the way | What got in the way | Why it happened | Change to try | Owner (a role) | How we will know | ## Questions the notes do not answer (up to three bullets) Check this draft with the people who were there before you share it. ```` **You get back:** A short review with a summary, what went well, a table of problems and changes, and the open questions. **Check after Step 4: The review ends with the reminder to check it with the people involved** Check by eye: The answer includes the words "Check this draft with the people who were there before you share it.". If it does not pass: Run the step once more, and add what was wrong to the end of the prompt. If it still does not pass, fix it by hand and make a note of it. ## Final checks Run these on the finished result. **Final check 1: Every number in the review is in the notes** Check by eye: Every number in the answer also appears in the what happened. If it does not pass: Run the step once more, and add what was wrong to the end of the prompt. If it still does not pass, fix it by hand and make a note of it. **Final check 2: No line puts the fault on a person** Open a new chat (so the check is not swayed by the work) and paste this check prompt: ````text You are a careful reviewer. You do not fix or rewrite the work; you only decide whether it passes one check. The check: No line puts the fault on a person Read the review in the answer. Does any line name a person as the cause, say someone failed, forgot or should have done something, or guess at a person's reasons? Roles are fine when they only say who owns a change. Answer FAIL and quote each line that does. The work to check (the answer from Step 4 (Write the review)): [PASTE HERE: the answer from Step 4 (Write the review)] Reply with exactly PASS or FAIL on the first line. On the second line, say in one sentence why. If it fails, name the exact item or line that fails. Do not add anything else. ```` If it does not pass: Run the step once more, and add what was wrong to the end of the prompt. If it still does not pass, fix it by hand and make a note of it. **Final check 3: Each change fits its cause and names an action** Open a new chat (so the check is not swayed by the work) and paste this check prompt: ````text You are a careful reviewer. You do not fix or rewrite the work; you only decide whether it passes one check. The check: Each change fits its cause and names an action Compare each change in the answer with its cause in the sorted events below. Does each change answer the cause in its own row, and does it say what a person would do, rather than advice such as "be more careful" or "plan better"? Answer FAIL and quote each change that does not. The sorted events: [PASTE HERE: the answer from Step 2 (Sort what went well from what got in the way)] The work to check (the answer from Step 3 (Turn each problem into a change)): [PASTE HERE: the answer from Step 3 (Turn each problem into a change)] Reply with exactly PASS or FAIL on the first line. On the second line, say in one sentence why. If it fails, name the exact item or line that fails. Do not add anything else. ```` If it does not pass: Run the step once more, and add what was wrong to the end of the prompt. If it still does not pass, fix it by hand and make a note of it. **Final check 4: The people involved read it before it is shared** Ask yourself: Read the review with the people who were there. Ask each whether it matches what they remember and whether any line reads as blame, and change any line they dispute before you share it. Only they know what the notes left out. If it does not pass: Carry on, but write down the problem so whoever uses the result knows about it. ## What you end up with - A summary of how the project went in two sentences. - A list of what went well. - A table of what got in the way, why, one change to try, an owner role and a way to know. - The questions the notes cannot answer. ## Changing this chain - The template looks for causes in the situation, such as a missing step or a date that slipped, and never in a person. It cannot know what the notes leave out, so it ends with questions and a reminder to read the review with the people who were there. - Paste only what you are allowed to share with an AI tool. If the notes name people you would rather not share, change the names to roles first. - To change how many open questions it writes, edit the number in the last step's rules. - For a long project, run it one phase at a time and join the tables. - A figure that is only in the goal line is not in the notes, so the number check will not accept it in the review. Repeat the figure in your notes if you want it used. - A change is a suggestion to try, not a decision. The people involved decide which ones to adopt and who owns them. --- From Logic Lab (logiclabhq.com). Free to use and adapt, with credit.