Coaching practices for When I List My Reasons They Bleed Into Each Other Two of Them Are Basically the Same Point Dressed Up Twice and I'm Never Sure I've Actually Covered Everything or Just Repeated Myself While Leaving a Hole Someone Will Poke at
Describe almost anything you are working through and IX Coach finds the practices whose real-world fit is closest. For When I List My Reasons They Bleed Into Each Other Two of Them Are Basically the Same Point Dressed Up Twice and I'm Never Sure I've Actually Covered Everything or Just Repeated Myself While Leaving a Hole Someone Will Poke at, these are the strongest matches in the current practice library.
Does this sound like the set of challenges you might be facing?
- When I list my reasons they bleed into each other
- I’ve got a strong opinion about this but when I try to spell out why, it all runs together
- My bullet points look tidy on the page but they feel lopsided when I read them aloud
- My drafts balloon because everything feels worth including, and I can’t tell which lines are actually carrying the argument versus which ones are just interesting and true
- There’s one obvious hole in my case and I keep wanting to just not mention it
Practices that may help
- Group supporting ideas into mutually exclusive, collectively exhaustive buckets
Organize your three to five supporting points so they don’t overlap and together cover the argument completely (MECE).
The Minto Pyramid Principle - Separate the claim from its reasons
Start every map by writing the central claim and the distinct reasons offered for it.
Argument Mapping - Use parallel structure across every level of the pyramid
Ideas at the same level of the hierarchy should be grammatically and logically parallel.
The Minto Pyramid Principle - Apply the "so what?" test to every supporting point
Each supporting point should directly and uniquely answer the question above it in the pyramid.
The Minto Pyramid Principle - Use two-sided messages with a sophisticated audience
Acknowledge the strongest objection, then refute it — this is more persuasive than ignoring it.
Elaboration Likelihood Model, Made Practical - Add the strongest objection to every major supporting reason
For each supporting reason, find the best counter and put it on the map.
Argument Mapping - Count the assumptions each explanation requires
When two explanations fit the facts, count how many unverified assumptions each one rests on.
Occam’s Razor: Prefer the Simpler Explanation - Use the correct I-statement structure
"I feel [emotion] when [specific observable situation] because [why it matters to me]."
I-Statements: How to Express Yourself Without Triggering Defensiveness - Identify what the narrative leaves out
After hearing or constructing a causal story, deliberately list the facts it doesn’t explain.
The Narrative Fallacy: Why We Can’t Stop Making Stories - Rate the strength of each logical link
Assign a confidence to each "supports" or "rebuts" link, not just to the conclusion.
Argument Mapping
Related concerns
- Logical Argument Structure
Start every map by writing the central claim and the distinct reasons offered for it.
Separate the claim from its reasons
- When Argument Mapping Identify Claim And Reasons
Start every map by writing the central claim and the distinct reasons offered for it.
- Argument Structure Basics
"I feel [emotion] when [specific observable situation] because [why it matters to me]."
Use the correct I-statement structure
- Argument Structure Check
"I feel [emotion] when [specific observable situation] because [why it matters to me]."
- Argument Structure Evaluation
Map the logic and evaluate it independently of who made the argument.
Evaluate the argument structure, not the source
- How To Organize Arguments
For each supporting reason, find the best counter and put it on the map.
Add the strongest objection to every major supporting reason
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