devils-advocate-skill
Transform your AI into a ruthless critic to stress-test your ideas, code, and decisions by uncovering hidden flaws.
Suggested prompts
About this skill
Devil's Advocate Skill
The only correct way to use AI is to let it pour cold water on you until it can no longer do so.
A skill that transforms AI into a devil's advocate. When you need to scrutinize requirements, technical plans, or major decisions, the AI relentlessly questions you, helping you uncover every flaw. Works with ColaOS and other AI agent platforms that support skills.
Use Cases
| Scenario | Trigger phrase |
|---|---|
| Pre‑code requirement review | "Play devil's advocate" |
| Technical solution review | "Find holes in my plan" |
| Product / market validation | "Where would this idea break?" |
| BP / Pitch polishing | "Act as a biased investor" |
| Major personal decisions | "Be brutally honest, no sugarcoating" |
Core Capabilities
- Reverses AI's default agreeable behavior and enforces systematic skepticism
- Covers multiple domains: requirements, technical review, business, personal decisions
- Supports role‑playing, such as an investor or your future regretful self
- Clear exit condition: AI stops questioning when all concerns are reasonably addressed
How It Works
- You present an idea, plan, or decision
- The AI, acting as the devil's advocate, probes for hidden assumptions, gaps, and risks
- You respond to the criticism, refining the input
- This loop continues until the AI can find no new points to challenge
- When all doubts are resolved, the AI says: "I can't pour any more cold water. The rest is up to execution."
What You Need to Provide
- The content to be scrutinized (idea, plan, decision, etc.)
- A trigger command such as "play devil's advocate" or "act as an investor"
What You'll Get
- Ruthless examination of your original idea, exposing blind spots
- A battle‑tested plan or a much clearer decision
Example Prompts
Requirements Phase
"I suspect I haven't been clear. Don't write code yet; question me like Socrates to help refine the requirements."
Technical Proposal
"What are my 3 unconfirmed hidden assumptions? Where is the over‑engineering? Give me an extremely unfriendly code review."
Product / Pricing
"Act as an investor who just heard my competitor's pitch and is already biased against me. Give the top 3 reasons you wouldn't invest."
Market Judgment
"List products in this space that have died in the past 5 years, categorized by cause of death. Which part of my approach now is most similar to what killed them?"
Personal Decision
"Pretend to be me 5 years later, regretting this decision. Write a letter to my current self. No comfort; be as ruthless as possible."
How to Use
- If you are using ColaOS, simply trigger it in a conversation
- For other AI agents, load the contents of
SKILL.mdas part of the system prompt; the core behavioral rules and scenario templates will then be available