Playbook · Research
Research a topic¶
Get a short, honest answer to a real question — with sources you can click — instead of a confident guess.
Want to see the payoff before you start? See a finished example brief.
Option 1 — Install it once (recommended)¶
Download the research playbook
Version 1 · July 2026 · Updates always land at this same link, and this page notes what changed.
Never give an AI a file you haven't looked inside. Here's everything in this one.
What's inside this zip (read before handing it to your AI)
Two plain-text files you can open yourself:
research-brief-skill/INSTALL.md— install instructions for your AI. Full text below.research-brief-skill/SKILL.md— the playbook itself, saved to your vault during install.
Full text of INSTALL.md, word for word:
# INSTALL.md — instructions for the AI agent
You have been given this folder by the person you are helping.
Your job: install the skill inside it so they can reuse it in any
future conversation, then offer to run it now.
Follow these steps exactly.
1. **Find their home base.** Ask: "Where do you keep your permanent
notes or project files? (This is often called a vault or
workspace.)" If they don't have one, offer to create a folder
called `Vault` in the current location and use that.
2. **Install the skill.** Copy `SKILL.md` from this folder to:
`<their vault>/Skills/research-brief/SKILL.md`
Create the `Skills` folder if it doesn't exist. Do not modify
the file. Do not touch anything else in their vault.
3. **Confirm out loud.** Tell them exactly this:
"Installed. From now on, just say **'Start my research playbook'**
and I'll walk you through it — no download needed. If we're in a
brand-new conversation, say: *Read Skills/research-brief/SKILL.md
and start it.*"
4. **Offer to run it now.** If they say yes, open `SKILL.md` and
follow it from the top.
Safety rules: stay inside the folder the person chose, ask before
creating or overwriting any file, and never send anything anywhere
without showing it to them first.
Give the zip to your AI and send:
Locate the most recently downloaded copy of research-brief-skill.zip, extract it, open INSTALL.md, and follow the instructions inside.
Your AI saves the playbook to your notes. From then on, just say:
What happens next: it asks you five short questions — what you want to know, why, who'll read it, what it must cover, how current it needs to be. Then it researches, shows its sources, and reviews the result with you.
Option 2 — Quick copy-paste (any AI chat)¶
Interview me one question at a time to build a research brief:
what I want to find out, what decision it helps with, who will
read it, 3-5 things it must cover, and how current it must be.
Then research it. Rules: cite sources for important claims,
separate facts from your own reasoning, say what you don't know,
and never invent a source. End with: summary, key findings,
risks and unknowns, what it means for my decision, source list.
Before you trust it¶
- Click the sources behind anything you'll act on.
- Check that dates are shown where they matter.
- Make sure "we don't know" is stated, not papered over.
- Confirm the conclusion answers your question.
A polished answer is not a checked answer
AI can sound certain and be wrong — here's why it makes things up. Open the two or three sources that matter most.
You're done when¶
Another person could read your brief and click their way to the evidence behind it.
If this helped
This playbook just saved you a research afternoon. If it helped, a small tip keeps every guide here free. Tip on Ko-fi
Pairs well with: Build a knowledge base, so briefs worth keeping become notes you can find again.