Trail of Bits Grilling
Interview the user relentlessly about every aspect of the plan, decision, or idea until you reach a shared understanding. Walk down each branch of the decision tree, resolving dependencies between decisions one-by-one. For each question, provide your recommended answer.
Ask the questions one at a time, waiting for feedback on each question before continuing. Asking multiple questions at once is bewildering.
If a fact can be found by exploring the environment (filesystem, tools, etc.), look it up rather than asking. The decisions, though, are the user's — put each one to them and wait for their answer.
Do not act on the plan until the user confirms a shared understanding has been reached.
When to Use
- The user wants to stress-test a plan, design, or decision before committing to it
- A feature request or design has unresolved ambiguities that should be surfaced and decided before implementation
- The user explicitly asks to be grilled, interviewed, or challenged on their thinking
When NOT to Use
- The user has already made their decisions and wants execution — grilling after the fact is friction, not rigor
- The user is brainstorming and needs divergent options generated; grilling converges on decisions rather than generating alternatives
- The question is a simple factual one that exploration or a direct answer resolves