Discuss before you produce

This lesson is still being tested: it improves with learners' feedback. If something is unclear, it is the lesson that needs fixing, not you.

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to

have your request rephrased before the AI gets started;
ask for two options and choose knowing their pros and cons;
have your idea critiqued, honestly;
give your green light (“go”) only when the request is clear.

Why it matters to you

When the AI heads in the wrong direction, you often find out by reading the result: then you have to fix everything. Discussing first costs two or three messages, and often saves you from redoing a whole document. This is the second step of the method: after SAY, DISCUSS.

Before you start


You need	Your assistant, free account, and your “My requests” note
Cost	€0
Duration	35 minutes
Reminder	The project in the example is made up; for yours, nothing sensitive

Understand it in 3 minutes

Discussing before you produce is three steps, then a green light.

Step	What you ask	What it gives you
Rephrase	“Rephrase my request in 2 sentences, and tell me what you’re missing.”	You see what the AI understood, and you correct it right away
Offer two options	“Give me 2 ways to do it, with their pros and cons.”	You choose, instead of taking the first idea that comes up
Critique	“What could go wrong? Be frank.”	You discover a risk before it costs you time
The green light	“Go: now do…”	The AI produces, taking into account everything that was said

One sentence changes everything: “Don’t write the result until I say go.” The AI can rephrase, ask questions and suggest options; the final result waits for your green light. Without this sentence, it often wants to deliver right away.

For an honest critique, ask a neutral question. You saw it in module 1: the AI tends to agree with you. “My idea is good, right?” calls for a yes. “What could go wrong?” lets it disagree with you.

When should you skip this step? For a simple question (“translate this sentence”, “give me a synonym”), discussing would waste time. The longer or more important the work, the more time the discussion saves.

Do it together

The project in the example is made up: organizing a yard sale on your street.

1Step 1: Get it to rephrase and ask questions

I'd like to organize a yard sale on my street, in the spring.
Before suggesting anything, rephrase my idea in 2 sentences, then ask me the 3 questions that would help you most. One question at a time.
Don't write the result until I say "go".

Read the rephrasing. If a point is wrong or missing, say so. Then answer its questions with made-up answers (for example: about twenty neighbors, a Sunday, no budget).

2Step 2: Two options

Give me 2 ways to organize this yard sale, with the pros and cons of each. Tell me which one you would choose, and why.

Choose one option. You can also mix the two: “I’ll take option 1, with the idea of the posters from option 2.”

3Step 3: Get it critiqued

What could go wrong with the option I chose? Be frank: give me the 3 main risks, and what I should check myself.

If the AI talks about permits, rules or deadlines, its answer is a lead, not proof: for a yard sale, the real answer is with your local authority (your town hall or city office). You will see how to check in lesson 4.

4Step 4: The green light

Go: now make the task list for the chosen option, taking into account my answers and the risks. For each task: what, and when.

Compare with what you would have gotten by directly asking “Make me the task list for a yard sale”: today’s list takes your situation and the risks into account.

Your turn

A real project from your life, small or medium: a meal, a tidy-up, a move, a presentation, an application…

Write your request with the 4 elements from lesson 1, and add “Don’t write the result until I say go”.
Go through the three steps: rephrase, two options, critique.
Give your green light, then read the result.
Keep in “My requests” the discussion sentence that helped you most.

Check your work

It worked if:

the AI rephrased your request, and you corrected or confirmed its rephrasing;
you chose an option knowing why;
you got a critique with at least one risk, and you decided what to do about it (even if you had already thought of it);
the final result was not written before your “go”.

Common mistakes:

answering “yes” to the rephrasing without reading it: this is the moment to correct;
asking a leading question (“it’s a good idea, right?”): the critique will be weak;
discussing for twenty messages for a simple request: two or three are enough;
taking a rule quoted by the AI (permit, deadline, price) for a certainty: it is a lead to check;
letting the AI produce before your green light: if it does, remind it “I didn’t say go: go back to the rephrasing”.

Keep it and pick it up later

Your “My requests” note now contains a discussion sentence that works for you.
Your next important request contains “Don’t write the result until I say go”.

Going further

optional

You will find this step again with an agent in module 4: Claude Code’s Plan mode prepares a plan, and only changes your files after your approval.

New words

4 words explained

Word	What it means
Rephrase	Say a request again in your own words, to show what you understood
Option	One possible way of doing something, with its pros and cons
Neutral question	A question that doesn’t suggest the answer: “What could go wrong?” rather than “It’s good, right?”
Green light (“go”)	The moment you allow the AI to produce, once the request is clear