# Write up a decision in one minute: prompt chain Turn your notes from a discussion into a short decision record a person can read in about a minute, with what was decided, why, what was ruled out and why, who decided, and when to look at it again. **Made for:** Anyone who keeps the record for a team, such as a coordinator, an assistant, a project lead or a board secretary. ## Before you start Have these ready: - **The question that was settled** (required): One line on what the group had to decide. - **Notes from the discussion** (required): Paste your notes in any order. Include the options that came up, what people said about them, who decided and anything said about looking at it again. **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: List every option and how it came out Write down each option the notes mention, whether it was chosen or ruled out, and the reason the notes give. Copy this prompt: ````text You are a careful note-taker who records what was said and does not weigh it. Your task is to list every option the group considered and how each came out. This step does one job: it lists options. It does not write the record. The question: [PASTE HERE: The question that was settled] The notes: [PASTE HERE: Notes from the discussion] Rules: - Write one row for each option the notes mention, including one that is only mentioned in passing. - In "Outcome", use exactly one of these: chosen, ruled out, not clear. Use not clear when the notes do not say what happened to the option. - In "Reason", give the reason in the notes' own words, as short as you can. If the notes give no reason, write exactly Not in the notes. - Do not add an option the notes do not mention. Do not give a reason of your own. Return one markdown table and nothing else: | Option | Outcome | Reason | The Outcome column must say exactly chosen, ruled out or not clear. ```` **You get back:** A table of every option, with an outcome and the reason the notes give. **Check after Step 1: Every outcome is chosen, ruled out or not clear** Check by eye: Every row of the table has one of "chosen", "ruled out" or "not clear" in the Outcome 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 2: Pull out who decided, when, why and when to look again Find the four facts a record needs, each quoted from the notes, with a gap marked as a gap. Copy this prompt: ````text You are a careful note-taker who finds facts in notes and never fills a gap. Your task is to find four facts in the notes: who decided, the date it was decided, the main reason, and when to look at it again. This step does one job: it finds facts. The question: [PASTE HERE: The question that was settled] The notes: [PASTE HERE: Notes from the discussion] Rules: - Write exactly four rows, one for each fact, in this order: Decided by, Date decided, Main reason, Look again when. - In "Value", write the fact as the notes give it. If the notes do not say, write exactly Not stated. - In "Quote", copy the words from the notes that show it, word for word, as short as you can. If the value is Not stated, write exactly None found. - If the notes do not say clearly who decided, write Not stated and do not name the person who spoke last. If the notes give no date for the decision, write Not stated. Do not work out a date from another date. - Do not guess a reason or a date to look again. Return one markdown table and nothing else: | Fact | Value | Quote | ```` **You get back:** A four-row table of the facts a decision record needs, each quoted or marked Not stated. **Check after Step 2: Every quote is word for word from the notes** Check by eye: Every quote in the Quote column appears word for word in the notes from the discussion. 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: Write the one-minute record Put the decision, the reason, what was ruled out, when to look again and the gaps into a record short enough to read in a minute. Copy this prompt: ````text You are a clear writer who keeps records that people can read in a minute. Your task is to write the decision record from the material below. This step does one job: it writes up what the earlier steps found. The question: [PASTE HERE: The question that was settled] The options: [PASTE HERE: the answer from Step 1 (List every option and how it came out)] The facts: [PASTE HERE: the answer from Step 2 (Pull out who decided, when, why and when to look again)] Rules: - Keep the whole record to 170 words or fewer, so it reads in about a minute. - Under "Decision", write one sentence that says what was decided, then a line that begins "Decided by:" with the person and the date. If either is Not stated, write "Not stated in the notes" in its place. - Under "Why", write one or two sentences using only the reasons the notes give. - Under "Ruled out", write one bullet for each option marked ruled out, with the option and its reason. If an option is marked not clear, put it under "Not in the notes" instead. - Under "Look again when", write one line from the facts. If it is Not stated, write "Not stated in the notes." - Under "Not in the notes", write one bullet for each thing the notes leave open, such as an unclear decider or an option with no outcome. If there is nothing, write "- None found." - Write a number only as the notes write it. Do not add a total, a date or a reason that the notes do not give. - End with exactly this line: Ask the person who decided to confirm this before you file it. Return markdown in this form and nothing else: ## Decision (one sentence) Decided by: (person and date) ## Why (one or two sentences) ## Ruled out (one bullet for each) ## Look again when (one line) ## Not in the notes (one bullet for each) Ask the person who decided to confirm this before you file it. ```` **You get back:** A decision record of 170 words or fewer that reads in about a minute. **Check after Step 3: The record is 170 words or fewer** Check by eye: The answer is no longer than 170 words. 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 record is in the notes** Check by eye: Every number in the answer also appears in the notes from the discussion. 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: The record ends with the reminder to confirm it** Check by eye: The answer includes the words "Ask the person who decided to confirm this before you file 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 check 3: Every option that was ruled out is in the record with its reason** 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: Every option that was ruled out is in the record with its reason Compare the record with the options table below. Is every option marked "ruled out" named in the record, each with the reason the table gives, and is every option marked "not clear" listed under "Not in the notes"? Answer FAIL and name each option that is missing or has a different reason. The options: [PASTE HERE: the answer from Step 1 (List every option and how it came out)] The work to check (the answer from Step 3 (Write the one-minute record)): [PASTE HERE: the answer from Step 3 (Write the one-minute record)] 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: Every reason is one the notes give** 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: Every reason is one the notes give Read the "Why" and "Ruled out" sections. Does any line give a reason the notes do not give, or name who decided, or give a date, when the notes do not? Answer FAIL and quote each line that does. The notes: [PASTE HERE: Notes from the discussion] The work to check (the answer from Step 3 (Write the one-minute record)): [PASTE HERE: the answer from Step 3 (Write the one-minute record)] 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 5: The person who decided agrees with the record** Ask yourself: Show the record to the person who made the decision. Ask whether it says what they decided and why, and whether any ruled-out option is shown unfairly. Only they know what they meant. 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 decision record that reads in about a minute, with what was decided, who decided it and when, and why. - The options that were ruled out, each with its reason. - When to look at the decision again, and what the notes leave open. ## Changing this chain - The record is held to 170 words so it reads in about a minute. To change the length, change 170 in the last step's rules and in its check, both. - The template never fills a gap. If the notes do not say who decided, when, or when to look again, the record says so under "Not in the notes", which is a prompt for you to ask. - Paste the notes as you have them. If you only remember the decision, write down the options and the reasons first, because the record is only as good as the notes. - A figure that is only in the question line is not in the notes, so the number check will not accept it in the record. Repeat the figure in your notes if you want it used. - For a decision that is still open, do not use this template. List the options and compare them first. --- From Logic Lab (logiclabhq.com). Free to use and adapt, with credit.