Worksheet · Public · 10 min
Deciding in context
One sitting with one decision you are living with. It brings the context into view. The decision stays yours.
For one decision you are living with. Which school, whether to take the role, when to stop, whether to say something. One sitting. The worksheet does not make the decision. It brings what belongs to the decision into view so that the decision is yours to make.
Before you begin
- Write the decision as a question.
- Note when it needs to be made, if it does.
- Note who else it touches.
What is this decision really about?
The articulation pass. The question as first asked is rarely the workable one. "Which school should the children attend?" may be "We are trying to protect stability while finding out whether the current school can keep meeting their needs." Neither is final. The second is easier to work with.
| The question as first asked | The question restated | What it is trying to protect, resolve, or make possible |
|---|---|---|
What belongs to this decision?
Money, time, people, history, a promise made, a fear. Write each part down and why it belongs. Then notice what you left out on purpose.
| Part | Why it belongs | What happens if it is left out |
|---|---|---|
What do you know, and what are you assuming?
Insight stays attributable: what is known, what is inferred, what remains uncertain. Most stuck decisions are stuck in the middle column.
| Known | Assumed | Cannot know yet |
|---|---|---|
Who does this touch?
Tribe: relationship within the context. Some people decide with you. Some live with the result. Some only need to hear about it.
| Person or group | Decides with me · Lives with it · Needs to know | What changes for them |
|---|---|---|
What are the options, including waiting?
Waiting is an option with its own cost and its own return. So is asking one more question first.
| Option | What it moves | What it costs | What comes back if it goes badly |
|---|---|---|---|
What moves next?
- The decision, or the next step toward it:
- What I will watch for after:
- When I will revisit this:
A decision made in context can still be wrong. What comes back updates the context.
In the PLAIT Context System the decision lives as a note inside the PLAIT it belongs to, with the options and the follow-up task beside it. The download carries this worksheet as app-aligned entries.
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