Draw the line
A useful system makes its handoff visible.
The boundary is a design decision about information and accountability. A system can prepare the context, apply an explicit rule, and make the next action easier. It should not silently continue when the evidence needed to make the decision is absent.
The important question is not “can a tool do this?” It is “what must be true for this action to be safe, and who is responsible when it is not true?”
System: repeat a stable, explainable step.
System: surface the state and missing information.
Human: judge context, relationship, or consequence.
Human: own the exception and decide the next rule.
Boundary test
Design the exception before scaling the normal path.
01
Name the decision
Write what someone is deciding today and the evidence they use.
02
Separate handling
Identify the routing, copying, and checking that follows the same rule every time.
03
Write the stop condition
State what missing context or unexpected state prevents the system from continuing.
04
Assign review
Name the owner and the information they need to resolve the exception.
Bring the rule that feels useful but still makes people uneasy.
We can locate the missing context and design the stop condition before it becomes a silent failure.
Bring the page, report, or workflow as it is now.
We reply with the clearest next step, or an honest no.
