Bring one live decision that should have moved by now. Six questions, about two minutes. It returns a hypothesis about where movement stops, and what that means you should do next. Sometimes the answer is that this is not a communications problem at all.
Question 1 of 7
What has to happen that is not happening?
Pick the decision that is actually stuck, not the whole plan.
Question 2 of 7
Before anything else, is one of these true?
Select any that apply. This rules out the things no case can repair.
One more on the evidence
Unproven, or not provable yet?
These look the same from inside and need completely different work.
Question 3 of 7
When it stalls, what do you actually hear?
Their words, as closely as you can remember them.
Question 4 of 7
Inside your own organisation, how many versions of the story are there?
Ask three people what you do. Count how many different answers you get.
Question 5 of 7
Do you know where it breaks?
The specific page, slide or moment where the room stops moving.
Question 6 of 7
Is this one decision, or a pattern?
Question 7 of 7
Roughly what is riding on this decision?
Not your budget. The size of the thing that is not moving. It decides whether fixing this is worth doing at all.
Hypothesis
What would confirm it
What would rule it out
What I would do next
This is a hypothesis, not a diagnosis. Six answers cannot see your material, and the shape of a problem is evidence for a cause rather than proof of one. It holds until the room tests it, or until someone reads what you actually send.
Send this to me and I will read it properly.
I will reply with what I think is actually happening, and whether I am the right person for it. If I am not, I will say so.
Sent. I read these myself and reply within a couple of days.