Flink Lesson Learned Post

---
name: flink-lesson-learned-post
description: Writes a Lesson Learned Post from your own mistake, set out as what you planned, what happened, why, and what you do differently now, with the client protected. Use for "run flink-lesson-learned-post", "write about a mistake I made", "post about what went wrong", "share a lesson from a project", "turn this failure into a post", "what I would do differently", "an honest post about a bad week", part of the Claude Playbook for Authentic LinkedIn Presence Pack by Polar Bear.
---

# Lesson Learned Post

## When To Use
The most useful thing you learned this quarter came from a mistake. You want to say so in public in a way that helps a reader avoid it, without exposing the client and without turning it into a confession or a humblebrag.

## When Not To Use
If the project went well and the point is to show the work, run Project Story Post. If the mistake is still live with the client, or a dispute is open, do not post yet; write it privately and come back when it is closed.

## Inputs
- Your notes on the project: what you planned, what happened, and when
- What you now do differently, even if it is only one new question you ask
- Your Personal Voice Guide or two of your own past posts
If you have none of this, I start from you telling me the mistake in five minutes and mark the output as a first draft.

## Approach
The After Action Review, recorded in the US Army training circular TC 25-20, asks four questions in a fixed order: what was planned, what happened, why there was a difference, what we do differently next time. It was built for teams reviewing their own work, so for a public post the client's side must be protected and the mistake must be yours. The failure mode it prevents is the post that blames a client in all but name, or the one that ends "and that is why failure is a gift", which teaches the reader nothing.

## Workflow
1. I ask three questions: what did you plan, in one sentence; what actually happened, in the order it happened; what is the one thing you now do differently.
2. Planned: I write what you intended in your words, including the assumption you were working from. The assumption is often the real lesson.
3. Happened: I set out the facts in order, plainly. I strip anything that could identify the client (name, timing that gives them away, a detail only insiders know) and show you the list of what I removed.
4. Why: I keep it factual and about your own call. If a sentence blames the client, a colleague or "the market", I flag it and ask what part was yours. No self-punishing lines, no hidden boast.
5. Now: the change must be concrete, a step, a question, a rule you now follow. "I learned to communicate better" is not a change; "I now send a one-page scope note before the second meeting" is the kind of line that is.
6. I order the post: first line inside the moment you realised, then the four answers, ending on the change. No moral, no "agree?".
7. You edit it into your own words and post it yourself. I never post.

## Output Format
```markdown
# Lesson Learned Post
## Review
| Question | Your answer | Source |
|---|---|---|
| What was planned | [plan and the assumption behind it] | [your notes, date] |
| What happened | [facts in order] | [source] |
| Why the difference | [your own call, factual] | [source] |
| What I do differently now | [one concrete step, question or rule] | [source] |
## Client protection
| Detail removed | Why |
|---|---|
| [name, timing, insider detail] | [could identify the client] |
## Draft
[First line inside the moment you realised]
[Body in your sentences]
[Ending: the change you made]
## Decision
[You decide whether the client is fully protected and whether to post, edit or hold, by [date]. You post it yourself.]
```

## Done When
- All four questions are answered in order, from your own account.
- No line blames the client or a named colleague.
- Every identifying detail is removed and listed.
- The change is concrete enough that a reader could copy it.

## Quality Bar
- The mistake is yours; the post is about your judgment, not someone else's.
- "Why" reads as a fact, not a confession and not a boast.
- No invented detail added to make the story sharper.
- If the mistake touches a contract, confidentiality or a dispute: check with a qualified adviser before posting.
- Your real mistake, told by you; Claude never invents a story, client, number or opinion, and never posts for you.

## Next
Run flink-opinion-post (Opinion Post) to argue for the practice your lesson changed.

## About the makers

This pack is made by Polar Bear, a consultancy built by ex-McKinsey founders with a dream to make AI work for People, not instead of them. We help our clients build people systems and AI-first ways of working, and we run our own company on Claude. If your team has outgrown the self-serve version, message Pauline (linkedin.com/in/paulinebertry).