What do we risk repeating?
Attempts
Past efforts to achieve similar goals.
- Have we tried this before? What happened?
- Have others attempted similar work? What were their outcomes?
- What approaches have been abandoned and why?
- What partial solutions already exist?
Patterns
Recurring themes or behaviours that may predict future outcomes.
- What patterns emerge from past similar situations?
- Are there seasonal or cyclical factors we've observed?
- What tends to trigger success or failure in this domain?
- How have timelines typically unfolded for similar work?
Relationships
How current relationships and dynamics were formed.
- What is the history between key actors?
- What past conflicts or collaborations shape current dynamics?
- How has trust been built or damaged?
- What commitments or promises were made previously?
Decisions
Past choices that created current conditions.
- What previous decisions led to current boundaries?
- Why were certain constraints put in place?
- What trade-offs were made and why?
- What assumptions guided past choices?
Lessons
Learning from experience.
- What knowledge is documented?
- What knowledge exists but isn't documented?
- What mistakes do people warn against repeating?
- What success factors have been identified?
Evolution
Adaptation over time.
- How has this domain evolved?
- What used to work but no longer does?
- What new capabilities or constraints have emerged?
- How have priorities shifted over time?