A brief is simply your explanation of what you need and why. It doesn't have to be long or polished, but what goes into it shapes everything that comes after. Here's what helps us most.

Start with the outcome, not the solution

Most people arrive with a solution already in mind, which is natural. It's more useful to start with what you want to be different once the work is done: what's taking too much of your time, what's worrying you, what you'd like to be able to do. A request for a particular thing tells us what to produce. The problem behind it tells us what to solve, and there may be a simpler way to get there than the one you first thought of.

If you do have a solution in mind, tell us that too, along with the reason behind it.

Tell us your constraints

Constraints are helpful, not awkward. They let us recommend something that fits your situation rather than something that's ideal only on paper. The most useful ones to share:

• Time. Tell us if there's a date this truly has to be ready by, and what's driving it.
• Budget range. Even a rough range helps. It lets us suggest the most sensible approach within it instead of guessing high or low.
• Must-haves. Anything that isn't negotiable, along with anything you already know you don't want.

Show us what you like and what you don't

Examples save a lot of words. If you've seen something close to what you have in mind, or worked with someone whose approach suited you, tell us what you liked about it. Examples of what you don't like are just as valuable; they often reveal preferences that are hard to put into words.

Tell us who decides

Let us know early who has the final say, and who else needs to be consulted. If a business partner, a family member or a board will weigh in before anything is approved, it's far easier to involve them at the beginning than to discover their views at the end.

Describe what "done" looks like

Finally, tell us how you'll know the work is finished. It might be something you can hold in your hands, a decision you feel ready to make, or a problem that has stopped coming back. When we share the same picture of "done," it's much easier to plan the steps in between and to recognize when we've arrived.

If you're not sure, say so

You won't have answers to all of this, and that's fine. Tell us what you know and flag what you don't. A brief with honest question marks is far more useful than one that sounds certain and isn't.

If writing isn't your thing, talk it through with us instead, and we'll summarize what we heard for you to correct.