skills.rest
kieranpotts
kieranpottsCOMMUNITY
Explore all skills by this author →
WebsiteGitHub

decide

Frame technical decisions and write them up as RFC records with alternatives and trade-offs.

Updated Feb 12, 2026
Search Tags:#architecture#documentation#decision record#adr#technical decision#rfc#trade-off analysis
One-click install
npx skills add https://github.com/kieranpotts/skills --skill decide-kieranpotts
Or copy as Structured Prompt for Agent▼
Please help me install this Agent Skill.
Skill: decide
Source: https://github.com/kieranpotts/skills/tree/main/skills/decide
Command: npx skills add https://github.com/kieranpotts/skills --skill decide-kieranpotts

SYSTEM DOCUMENTATION & REQUIREMENTS

What problem does it solve? Technical decisions about architecture, tooling, and process often get made informally and their reasoning is lost, leaving teams unable to revisit or challenge them later. This Skill structures a decision into a contestable RFC record with genuine alternatives, verified facts, and explicit trade-offs before the decision is settled. ## Core Features & Use Cases - Decision Framing: Sharpens a vague problem into a single disagreeable decision statement with an explicit out-of-scope list. - Alternatives Analysis: Evaluates at least two genuine options plus doing nothing, stating costs, risks, and downsides of the recommended option. - Store-Agnostic Authoring: Discovers the target decision store (RFC archive, ADR directory, decision log) and writes the record against its own template and conventions. - Use Case: A team debating whether to adopt pnpm across TypeScript services uses this Skill to produce an RFC weighing pnpm against npm and the status quo, with verified claims separated from assumptions and conditions stated that would change the recommendation. ## Quick Start Ask the agent to draft an RFC proposing a specific technical change, such as adopting trunk-based development, and answer its questions about motivation, constraints, and stakeholders.

Frequently Asked Questions about decide

High-intent search queries and answers about installing and using this skill.

FAQPage Schema
How do I write an RFC for a technical decision?▼

State the decision in one disagreeable sentence, establish the motivation with quantified costs, evaluate at least two genuine alternatives plus doing nothing, and recommend one option with conditions that would change your mind. Write the record against your decision store's own template.

When should a technical decision be recorded as an RFC?▼

A decision warrants an RFC when it is expensive to reverse, crosses team or service boundaries, or sets a precedent others will follow. Decisions that are cheap to reverse and touch one module do not justify the ceremony.

What is the difference between an RFC, ADR, and decision log?▼

They serve the same role: recording technical decisions and their reasoning. Projects variously call the store an RFC archive, ADR directory, decision log, or key design decisions, and this Skill adapts to whichever convention the target store documents.

Does this Skill create branches or pull requests for the RFC?▼

No. The Skill only authors the record's content and stops there. Cutting branches, opening pull requests, applying labels, and merging belong to the decision store's own lifecycle workflow.

What if a decision has only one viable option?▼

When a regulation, contract, or hard platform constraint forces the decision, state the constraint, name the option, and skip the alternatives analysis. Verify the constraint is real first, since convention is not a constraint.

Related Skills

Explore More Software Engineering Skills→
Simplified-ReasoningSimplified-Reasoning
58

web-browsing

Open and inspect authoritative public webpages to verify user questions with source URLs.

Official
Basic
HemantSudarshanHemantSudarshan

brainstorming

Document project goals, constraints, and acceptance criteria from current context.

Community
Advanced
tmchowtmchow
22

iterative:spike

Scope uncertain questions and build throwaway artifacts to validate ideas.

Community
Advanced
nguyenpv1980-wqnguyenpv1980-wq
2

adr-writer

Record technical decisions as structured ADRs with context, alternatives, and rollback plans.

Community
Advanced