Unleash the "Decision Replay"

Have you ever been involved in a "pick your brain" conversation?

Chances are, it was a bit difficult to arrive at nuggets of useful advice. That's because it takes a lot of work to figure out what the person asking for this chat really needs.

You know what's not a lot of work? Telling a story about something you already did. At times people might even volunteer their experiences to help you face yours (when I was pregnant, wow did I hear a lot of labor stories from other moms. Way more than I wanted, tbh.)

To transform cringy pick your brain requests into focused, valuable conversations, all you have to do is request a Decision Replay. I've put together a handy doc you can copy to try it out yourself:

The key to a successful Decision Replay is getting clear on what story you need to hear. I recently held a series of Decision Replay calls with people about how they decided to publish their books. So my request was: Could you talk to me about how you decided to publish your book?

Honestly, that's about all I needed to ask. A few follow-up questions here and there and the 15 minutes just flew by – and a number of people offered to stay on the call for longer to chat.

People love stories. And it can be just as valuable for them to revisit how they made the choices they did as it is for you to hear about it.

Getting clear on the story you need will help you connect with people who have that story to tell. Who did I need to connect with? Published authors. So I asked a bunch of people if they knew any published authors, and those who did were usually happy to pass along my request. (Plus: You're much more likely to get a "yes" from a mutual friend's request than a random cold email or DM.)

Once you've identified possible people to talk to, it's just three simple steps:

• Connect with 3-5 people to learn how they navigated a decision you're facing
• Ask for a 15-minute replay of their approach
• Apply intel to what you try next

And don't sweat it if not everyone responds to your request. Celebrate the wins when someone does agree to take you along during a trip down memory lane.

The next time you're facing a tricky decision, don't turn to brain-picking – score some real intel with a replay. Let me know how it goes!

Happy navigating,
Bridget