Brief 02

Brief 02

The first meeting

The first meeting is for finding out what the other person actually wants, not for proving that you are useful. If you spend the hour advising, you will leave with a weak record and they will leave with a blur.

Meet in a place where you can hear each other and write. A noisy cafe can work if you both already know the topic; it is a poor place to go through documents. Arrive with a short list of questions and a blank page, not a slide deck.

What to ask

What would a good ending look like, in their words? What have they already tried? Who else has a say in the decision? What must not happen? What is the date that actually matters (a lease renewal, a school term, a filing window), as opposed to the date they first mentioned?

Listen for work they think you have already agreed to do. If they say "so you will handle the application," and you have not agreed to that, say so in the room and again in the note you send afterwards.

How to close the meeting

Repeat, in a few sentences, what you think the job is and what you will do next. Ask if that is right. Then go and write it down the same day, while you still remember the exact phrases they used. That note is the start of the scope, or a revision of one you already sent.