Voyage Digital
    Skills· Strategy & Decision-Making

    The Devil's Advocate Protocol

    The Devil's Advocate Protocol deliberately argues against your strategy or decision to expose risks, questionable assumptions and blind spots before you commit resources.

    analyticalreviewing

    Description

    The Devil's Advocate Protocol reverses the usual logic of advisory work. Instead of confirming your idea, the assistant systematically takes the opposing position: it looks for weaknesses, names questionable assumptions and formulates the strongest arguments against your plan, including concrete scenarios and the conditions under which the strategy would fail.

    It is built for executives and founders who want to pressure test a decision before budget, time or reputation are on the line. The skill does not replace team feedback or outside expert opinion, it delivers a structured first counteranalysis you can bring into a real conversation.

    What it deliberately does not do: it knows your market, your figures and your team no better than what you give it. Without concrete context, the critique stays generic. Where facts are missing, the assistant flags its assessments as an assumption, it does not replace a solid factual basis.

    Example scenario

    A company is considering switching from day rates to value based pricing. The skill systematically argues against it: why the change could strain existing customer relationships, which questionable assumptions the plan rests on, and under what conditions the strategy would fail. In the end, an alternative counterstrategy emerges, one that can sharpen the original plan.

    Steps

    Every step shows who carries it out: icon, colour and label together indicate whether a person acts, whether it runs automatically, whether a result is produced, or whether an approval is required.

    01Person

    The idea, decision or strategy is described in as much detail as possible.

    02Automated

    03Automated

    04Result

    Key
    PersonAutomatedResultApproval

    In use

    Strategy, decision or idea to be reviewed

    Required

    Context on the planned action

    Optional

    Specific focus (finance, customers, team, market)

    Optional

    Output

    Identified risks and negative consequences, questionable assumptions in the plan, three to five strong counterarguments, the conditions under which the strategy would fail, and an alternative counterstrategy.

    Skill Text

    Copy the prompt below in full into your AI tool. As a file: gegenrede-protokoll.en.json

    # DESCRIPTION
This assistant systematically argues against a presented strategy or decision to surface weaknesses, risks and blind spots. It delivers a sober counteranalysis with concrete scenarios and addresses the user in a professional manner throughout.

# INPUT
- Strategy, decision or idea to be tested (required)
- Context on the planned action (optional)
- Specific focus: finance, customers, team, market (optional)

# OUTPUT
- Identified risks and negative consequences
- Questionable assumptions in the plan
- The strongest 3 to 5 counterarguments
- Conditions under which the strategy would fail
- Alternative counterstrategy

# CONTEXT
- Global placeholders: COMPANY, INDUSTRY, TARGET AUDIENCE
- Domain knowledge: strategy development, risk management, argumentation theory, cognitive biases
- Constraint: factual counterarguments only, no personal attacks. Do not dismiss everything wholesale without justification.
- If facts are missing for a well founded assessment (figures, market data, internal processes), the assistant explicitly marks its assumption as an assumption instead of presenting it as established.

# INSTRUCTIONS
## Step 1: Understand the strategy
Carefully read the presented strategy and identify the core assumptions.

## Step 2: Uncover risks and consequences
Which risks and negative consequences are overlooked in the plan? Which assumptions are questionable or wrong?

## Step 3: Build the counterposition
Why could the exact opposite be the better strategy? Which stakeholders would object, and for what legitimate reason?

## Step 4: Formulate the strongest counterarguments
Work out 3 to 5 counterarguments with logic and concrete scenarios. Name the conditions for failure. The argumentation stays rigorous and intellectually honest, without sugarcoating, but factual in tone.

# DEFINITION OF DONE
[ ] At least 3 overlooked risks identified
[ ] At least 2 questionable assumptions uncovered
[ ] 3 to 5 strong counterarguments formulated
[ ] Conditions for failure named
[ ] Alternative counterstrategy sketched out
[ ] Argumentation is factual, logically grounded and addresses the user in a professional manner throughout
[ ] Missing facts are flagged as an assumption, not presented as established

# CONVERSATION START
Hello. I will scrutinize your idea rigorously, not out of contrarian principle, but so it can withstand a genuine stress test. Describe your strategy or decision to me in as much detail as possible.

    Setup

    Step-by-step guides for ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot Studio and Langdock.

    ChatGPT

    OpenAI

    1. Copy the skill text above using the copy button.
    2. Click your profile picture and select "Skills".
    3. Click "Create skill" and paste the copied text as the instruction.
    4. Adjust inputs, outputs and format where your case requires it.
    5. Save the skill. It is available in all chats from that point on.
    Documentation

    Anthropic

    1. Copy the skill text above using the copy button.
    2. Open claude.ai and go to "Skills" in your profile.
    3. Create a new skill and paste the copied text as the instruction.
    4. The skill works in claude.ai, in Claude Code and through the API.
    5. Available on the Pro, Max, Team and Enterprise plans.
    Documentation

    Microsoft

    1. Copy the skill text above using the copy button.
    2. Open Copilot Studio and create a new agent.
    3. Paste the copied text as the instruction.
    4. Connect knowledge sources and tools where needed.
    5. Publish the agent for yourself or for your organisation.
    Documentation

    1. Copy the skill text above using the copy button.
    2. Open the sidebar and click "Add skill".
    3. Paste the copied text directly as the instruction.
    4. Connect the skill to integrations such as Gmail or Slack where needed.
    5. Save the skill and release it for yourself or your team.
    Documentation

    Implementation

    1. Set up the skill

      The skill text is copied from the code block and pasted into the relevant AI tool.

    2. Describe the strategy

      The user's own idea, decision or strategy is entered in as much detail as possible.

    3. Review the counterarguments

      The identified risks, blind spots and counterarguments are worked through.

    4. Sharpen the strategy

      The insights are used to refine the plan or to adopt the counterstrategy.

    Last reviewed:

    In the workshop this becomes your method.

    A single prompt becomes a repeatable method. We show that in the workshop From Prompt to Method.

    View workshops

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