Claude: compare options with an explicit assumption ledger

What you will make

A practical Claude guide to compare options with an explicit assumption ledger. Use the sample input and prompt, then check the result. Use a fictional support-document review as the practice setting. Keep passages and your interpretation in separate output fields.

Prepare the source and scope

Supply two fictional rollout options and the constraints that are actually known. Leave one dependency deliberately unresolved. Open Claude and start a focused conversation, or use the appropriate existing project for recurring work.

Try this prompt

In Claude, provide the prepared input, then send the following request. For real work, replace fictional details with approved facts.

Compare phased and single-date rollout. List assumptions separately from supplied facts, identify a failure mode for each option and explain what evidence would change the preference.

Review the result

Check that the preferred option still makes sense when an important assumption is reversed. Record each correction and its supporting source.

If the answer is wrong or incomplete

Detailed reasoning cannot repair a false premise. Validate the dependency before committing to the preferred approach. Put the source excerpt and the request in separate labeled blocks. For longer reviews, retain paragraph labels so corrections remain traceable.

Practice and completion check

Repeat with one incomplete input. Check the answer against the review criteria, remove unsupported claims and save the prompt with its source version. This workflow has not been verified in a customer deployment.