Building Claims
The ability to turn vague opinions into clear, testable statements.
Understanding the skill
Why this matters
- Discussions stop going in circles and become solvable.
- Disagreements feel less emotional and more factual.
- Decisions get made faster with less politics.
What goes wrong
- Using vague judgments like “bad”, “important”, or “better”.
- Combining multiple ideas into a single sentence.
- Relying on emotionally loaded language instead of specifics.
Training
Short, focused drills that force clarity
Point-Warrant-Impact Drill
Structure arguments using point, warrant, and impact to create clear, persuasive claims
One-Minute Argument
Compress an idea into a single, testable sentence with time pressure
Argument Skeleton Builder
Build the logical structure of arguments systematically
Hot Take Clarifier
Rewrite vague or loaded statements into precise claims (~3-5 minutes per round)
Executive Brief
Write concise, high-impact summaries for decision-makers
Best practices
- Keep every claim to exactly one sentence.
- Avoid absolutes like “always”, “never”, and “everyone”.
- Explicitly ask what evidence would prove the claim wrong.
Further reading
The Craft of Research
Wayne C. Booth, Gregory G. Colomb, Joseph M. Williams
2008
They Say / I Say: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing
Gerald Graff, Cathy Birkenstein
2021
Thinking, Fast and Slow
Daniel Kahneman
2011
A Rulebook for Arguments
Anthony Weston
2008
How to Read a Paper: The Basics of Evidence-based Medicine
Trisha Greenhalgh
2014
Ready now
Practice this skill
Choose a working exercise. Roleplays let you practice this skill under realistic pressure.
The Deepfake Before the Board Vote
A viral audio clip appears to show your CEO bribing a regulator. A board member wants an immediate suspension. The metadata is incomplete, the source is anonymous, and delaying the vote has real commercial costs.
Build a Precise Claim (Remote Work)
Focus on making the claim specific and evaluatable. Avoid slogans and vague value judgments.
Clarify a Hot Take
Hot take: "AI will destroy most jobs." Your goal is not to persuade, but to make the claim clear, scoped, and testable.