Tutorials, deep dives, and buyer's guides.
88 guides across four series, everything we've learned building this catalog, and no padding to hit a number.
How to Install a Claude Skill from authority.md (in 60 seconds)
Step-by-step guide to installing a thinking framework Claude Skill from authority.md: in Claude.ai, Claude Code, and the Claude API. Plus fallback for ChatGPT and Gemini.
22 guides
Practical, prompt-and-framework walkthroughs for one real task at a time, from prepping a negotiation to running a weekly review, newest work first.
Bringing AI Into a Creative Project Without Ruining It
What generic AI brainstorming actually gives a creative project and what it quietly flattens, four prompts that help today without taking over, and what changes when the AI applies Rick Rubin's documented listening practice instead of generic idea generation.
AI for Hiring Decisions: Where Claude and ChatGPT Actually Help
A grounded look at what generic AI use gets right and wrong when you're deciding on a hire, four prompts that genuinely sharpen the decision, and what changes when the AI applies a documented evidence-based hiring framework instead of generic interview advice.
Using AI to Prep for a Negotiation: What Actually Works
Generic AI negotiation advice is genuinely useful and genuinely limited. Here's what Claude and ChatGPT get right before a negotiation, four prompts that work today, and what changes once the AI has a documented framework instead of a generic one.
AI Won't Write Your Best Work, But It Can Improve It
What generic AI editing actually fixes and flattens in a piece of writing, four prompts that sharpen a real draft today, and what changes when the AI applies Joan Didion's documented precision instead of generic style advice.
Can AI Actually Help You Make Better Decisions?
A practical look at what Claude and ChatGPT are actually good for when you're stuck on a decision, four prompts that work today, and what changes once the AI is reasoning through a documented behavioural-science framework instead of generic advice.
The AI Prompts That Make a Feedback Conversation Easier to Prepare
What generic AI feedback drafting actually produces, four prompts that sharpen a real feedback conversation today, and what changes when the AI applies Kim Scott's documented Radical Candor framework instead of generic tact advice.
Learning Faster With AI: A Realistic Look
What generic AI tutoring actually gets right and wrong when you're trying to learn something hard, four prompts that speed up real learning today, and what changes when the AI applies Barbara Oakley's documented learning-science framework instead of generic study advice.
AI and the Hard Part of Managing Clients
What generic AI advice on a shaky client relationship actually catches, four prompts that sharpen the read today, and what changes when the AI applies the documented Trust Equation instead of generic client-management advice.
Prepping for a Meeting With Claude, ChatGPT, or Gemini
What generic AI meeting prep actually produces and misses, four prompts that sharpen a real meeting today, and what changes when the AI applies Andy Grove's documented output-focused method instead of generic agenda advice.
Pricing Your Work With AI: What ChatGPT and Claude Can (and Can't) Tell You
An honest look at what generic AI pricing advice gets right and where it stops, four prompts that sharpen an actual pricing decision today, and what changes when the AI applies a documented value-based fees framework instead of generic rate-setting advice.
How Product Teams Are Actually Using AI to Make Decisions
What generic AI product advice actually catches and misses, four prompts that sharpen a real roadmap decision today, and what changes when the AI applies Marty Cagan's documented empowered-teams framework instead of generic prioritization advice.
Getting Ready for a Discovery Call With Claude or ChatGPT
What generic AI call prep actually gets you before a sales conversation, four prompts that sharpen it today, and what changes when the AI applies Neil Rackham's documented SPIN research instead of generic sales-call advice.
Stress-Testing a Strategy With AI: A Method for Claude and ChatGPT
What generic AI feedback on a strategy document actually catches and misses, four prompts that surface real gaps today, and what changes when the AI applies Richard Rumelt's documented kernel framework instead of generic strategic-review advice.
Thinking Like an Investor With AI: What Gets Right and What It Doesn't
What generic AI investment chat actually gets right and dangerously wrong, four prompts that sharpen your own thinking today, and what changes when the AI applies Warren Buffett's documented margin-of-safety method instead of generic investing advice. Not investment advice.
Using AI as a Consultant or Fractional Executive
Where AI actually earns its keep in a consultant or fractional executive's real week, three prompts built for scoping engagements and pricing value, and which documented consulting frameworks are worth loading alongside it.
Using AI as a First-Time Founder
Where AI actually earns its keep in a first-time founder's real week, three prompts built for prioritization and hard calls under uncertainty, and which documented founder frameworks are worth loading alongside it.
Using AI as a Product Manager
Where AI actually earns its keep in a product manager's real week, three prompts built for prioritization and stakeholder conflict, and which documented product frameworks are worth loading alongside it.
Using AI as a Sales Leader
Where AI actually earns its keep in a sales leader's real week, three prompts built for pipeline calls and rep coaching, and which documented sales frameworks are worth loading alongside it.
Using AI as a Solo Operator or Freelancer
Where AI actually earns its keep in a solo operator's real week, three prompts built for pricing, outreach, and scope decisions, and which documented bootstrapping frameworks are worth loading alongside it.
Using AI as an Agency Owner
Where AI actually earns its keep in an agency owner's real week, three prompts built for scoping, pricing, and client-tier decisions, and which documented consulting frameworks are worth loading alongside it.
Why a Weekly Review Is a Good Use of AI, and How to Actually Run One
What a generic AI-assisted weekly review actually catches and misses, four prompts that sharpen the review today, and what changes when the AI applies Cal Newport's documented deep-work planning discipline instead of generic reflection prompts.
Writing Difficult Emails With AI: A Method That Actually Works
What ChatGPT and Claude are genuinely good at when you're stuck on a hard email, four prompts that produce a send-ready draft today, and what changes when the AI is writing from a documented direct-response framework instead of generic tone advice.
37 guides
Long-form breakdowns of how a whole category's featured thinkers actually reason, built from their own documented work rather than secondhand summary.
The performance frameworks behind Jordan, Bryant and Federer: what the documented record actually shows
Mamba mentality, process over outcome and the longevity discipline, explained through interviews, documentaries and the athletes' own accounts rather than the highlight-reel version.
The coaching frameworks that built championship cultures: Jackson, Wooden, Belichick and the documented method
The standard of performance, system over tactics, and player development as the moat, explained through the actual programmes and documented practices rather than the motivational-poster version.
The comedy writing disciplines that actually land: Seinfeld, Carlin, Gadsby and the documented craft
The daily streak, form subversion and material on yourself, explained through the actual specials, interviews and writing process rather than the open-mic pep talk version.
Contemplative frameworks as thinking tools: Lao Tzu, the Buddha, Alan Watts and the documented practice
Wu wei, the Four Noble Truths and beginner's mind, explained as practical attention disciplines rather than religious instruction or belief systems.
The creative process frameworks that survive a dry spell: Rubin, King, Disney and the documented practice
Stripping back, daily pages and constraint as engine, explained through the actual working methods rather than the muse-and-inspiration version of creativity.
The kitchen disciplines behind Child, Bourdain and Keller: what the documented record actually shows
Mise en place, refinement through repetition and accessible mastery, explained through the actual cookbooks, memoirs and kitchen accounts rather than the food-television version.
The design frameworks behind Wright, Rams and Ive: what the documented record actually shows
Form follows function, as little design as possible and material integrity, explained through the actual design principles and product history rather than the minimalism-poster version.
Economic thinking frameworks that explain the argument, not just the answer: Smith, Keynes, Ostrom and the documented disagreement
The invisible hand, animal spirits, commons governance and distributed knowledge, explained through the actual research rather than the political shorthand each name has become.
The education frameworks that actually change how people learn: Montessori, Freire, Dewey and the documented method
The prepared environment, banking versus dialogue and mastery before progression, explained through the actual research and case studies rather than the classroom-poster version.
The fashion frameworks behind Lagerfeld, Kawakubo and Abloh: what the documented record actually shows
The three-percent approach, anti-fashion and runway-to-rack, explained through the actual interviews and house structures rather than the front-row-caption version.
The directing frameworks behind Kubrick, Hitchcock and Kurosawa: what the documented record actually shows
Suspense over surprise, obsessive specificity and ecstatic truth, explained through the interviews and production accounts rather than the film-school poster version.
The systems design frameworks behind Miyamoto, Meier and Kojima: what the documented record actually shows
Interesting decisions, playful constraints and emergent simulation, explained through the actual interviews and design postmortems rather than the game-jam poster version.
How behavioural science explains the decisions you regret: Kahneman, Cialdini, Thaler and the documented research
System 1 thinking, the six principles of influence, choice architecture and growth mindset, explained with the actual experiments behind them rather than the LinkedIn version.
How business icons actually built enduring companies: Walton, Knight, Blakely and the operating record
Frugal scale, brand-as-experience and store-floor presence, drawn from the memoirs and operating histories of the founders who built brands that outlasted a single product cycle.
How the great investors actually think: mental models from Buffett, Munger, Dalio and the documented record
Investing is the best-documented thinking discipline there is. Here's what the shareholder letters, memos and interviews actually show about how great investors reason, drawn from the public record rather than folklore.
The reporting disciplines that actually hold up: Hitchens, Attenborough, Terkel and the documented method
Source discipline, out-preparing the room and patient observation, explained through the actual reporting record rather than the media-personality version of journalism.
Marketing frameworks that survive contact with a real campaign: Hormozi, Ogilvy, Godin and the documented method
Offer construction, awareness levels, permission marketing and the six principles of influence, explained with worked campaigns rather than swipe-file slogans.
Military strategy frameworks applied to modern decisions: Clausewitz, Eisenhower, Grant and the documented doctrine
Friction and fog of war, coalition leadership and simple orders, explained through the actual doctrine and campaign records, with no glorification of the wars themselves.
How movements actually get built: King, Nightingale, Burke and the documented organising method
Nonviolent provocation, documented harm and patient groundwork, explained through the actual campaigns and case records rather than the inspirational-poster version of activism.
The creative frameworks behind Eno, Bowie and Davis: what the documented record actually shows
Oblique strategies, persona reinvention and listening as discipline, explained through the interviews and studio accounts rather than the music-documentary highlight reel.
Negotiation mental models that survive contact with a real counterparty
Chris Voss's tactical empathy, Fisher and Ury's principled negotiation, and the rest of the documented negotiation record, explained with worked examples rather than slogans.
The performance frameworks that actually change behaviour: Clear, Newport, Collins and the evidence behind the habits
Identity-based habits, deep work and Level 5 leadership, explained through the actual research and case studies rather than the productivity-app version.
Philosophy frameworks for holding a question open: Arendt, Beauvoir, Davis and the documented method
The banality of evil, situated knowledge and critique through example, explained through the actual texts and arguments rather than the quote-card version of each thinker.
Political leadership frameworks under permanent scrutiny: Thatcher, Ardern, Ginsburg and the documented method
Conviction politics, crisis framing and strategic patience, explained through the actual speeches, rulings and case studies rather than the campaign-poster version.
Product management frameworks that actually hold up: Cagan, Torres, Norman and the discipline's real foundations
Empowered teams, continuous discovery, the build trap and affordance design, explained with worked scenarios rather than roadmap jargon.
How great scientists actually reasoned: Feynman, Curie, Darwin and the documented methods behind the discoveries
The Feynman technique, slow hunches, and thought experiments, explained through the biographies and the scientists' own accounts rather than the inspirational-poster version.
The engineering frameworks that actually hold up: Carmack, Hopper, Torvalds and the documented method
First-principles engineering, decomplecting, and reliability as a discipline, explained through the actual talks, mailing list posts and biographies rather than the quote-card version.
How historical leaders actually reasoned under pressure: Aurelius, Lincoln, Sun Tzu and the documented record
Stoic detachment, team of rivals and strategic deception, explained through the letters, doctrine and biography rather than the inspirational-quote version.
The operating frameworks behind Jobs, Bezos and Musk: what the documented record actually shows
First principles reasoning, working backwards, customer obsession and founder mode, explained through the letters, interviews and biographies rather than the founder-worship version.
Who the Creative Stack is for, and what ten approaches give you that one influence can't
The Creative Stack pairs Rick Rubin, Frida Kahlo, Hideo Kojima and seven others across restraint, reinvention and creative decision-making. Here's what each contributes and when.
Who the Decision-Maker's Stack is for, and what ten cross-domain minds give you that one field can't
The Decision-Maker's Stack pairs Charlie Munger, Daniel Kahneman, Sun Tzu and seven others across judgement, strategy and institutional power. Here's what each contributes and when.
Who the Engineer's Stack is for, and what ten minds give you that one changelog can't
The Engineer's Stack pairs Grace Hopper, Andrej Karpathy, Linus Torvalds and seven others across reliability, simplicity and systems thinking. Here's what each contributes and when.
Who the Founder Stack is for, and what ten thinkers give you that one can't
The Founder Stack pairs Naval Ravikant, Warren Buffett, Sara Blakely and seven others across capital, brand, product and personal sustainability. Here's what each contributes and when.
Who the Investor's Stack is for, and what ten frameworks give you that one favourite investor can't
The Investor's Stack pairs Warren Buffett, Charlie Munger, Cathie Wood and seven others across value, systems and contrarian conviction. Here's what each contributes and when.
Who the Leadership Stack is for, and what ten operators give you that one management book can't
The Leadership Stack pairs Phil Jackson, Satya Nadella, Margaret Thatcher and seven others across culture-building, crisis leadership and institutional power. Here's what each contributes and when.
Who Women Who Built Things is for, and what ten builders give you that one biography can't
Women Who Built Things pairs Grace Hopper, Marie Curie, Sara Blakely and seven others across engineering, science and brand-building. Here's what each contributes and when.
The writing frameworks that actually persuade: Didion, Morrison, Baldwin and the documented craft
Observation as method, revision as thinking and personal as political, explained through the actual essays and interviews rather than the writing-advice-poster version.
12 guides
Comparisons, installs, and honest buyer's guides for deciding what to get and how to set it up, a framework, a Tool, or your own prompt.
authority.md vs Think Like Them: Honest Comparison
Both sites offer AI thinking frameworks inspired by famous thinkers. One is free, one is $4.99. Here's what you actually get from each, who each is right for, and when we'd tell you to pick the other.
Claude Skill vs Custom GPT vs System Prompt: Which Should You Use?
Deep comparison of the three main ways to give AI a custom personality: Claude Skills, ChatGPT Custom GPTs, and raw system prompts. With honest pros, cons, and use cases.
Use a Thinking Framework in ChatGPT, Gemini & Other LLMs
How to load a thinking framework .md file into ChatGPT Custom GPTs, Gemini, Grok, and agent frameworks. Practical walkthrough with examples.
Stacking Thinking Frameworks: Which Ones Combine Well?
Not every pair of thinking frameworks works together. Some reinforce, some contradict, some cover each other's blind spots. Here's an honest guide to stacking.
What Is a Claude Skill? A Plain-English Explainer
Claude Skills in plain English: what they are, how they work, when to use them, and what they're good (and bad) at. With install instructions and honest limits.
Tools vs Frameworks: What's the Difference, and Which Do You Want?
A framework is $4.99 and a Tool can be $199. Here is the difference between the two product lines on authority.md, and which one you actually want.
Which Tool Should You Buy? An Honest Decision Guide
Twelve Tools, but you only need the one that matches the task you keep doing badly. A one-minute decision guide, including when the honest answer is to buy nothing yet.
Which Thinking Framework Should You Buy? An Honest Decision Guide
Not sure which thinking framework to download? This guide helps you pick by what you're actually working on: investments, product decisions, creative work, leadership, and more.
Best places to buy Claude Skills in 2026: marketplaces compared
Claude Skills covers coding tools, document processors, thinking frameworks, and more. Here's an honest breakdown of the leading marketplaces by category, with genuine picks for each, and where authority.md fits in.
Where to buy AI thinking frameworks: 2026 buyer's guide
AI thinking frameworks are mental models from named thinkers, delivered as files or prompts for Claude, ChatGPT, and Gemini. Here's how the options compare on criteria that actually matter: catalogue depth, format quality, price, and provenance.
authority.md vs Writing Your Own Prompts: Which Actually Works?
Before buying a framework, most people consider just writing their own prompt. Here's an honest look at when that works, when it doesn't, and when $4.99 actually saves you time.
How to Give Your AI Agent a Thinking Framework (API Guide)
Load a thinking framework into Claude, OpenAI, or any LLM agent via system prompt. Production-ready code examples for Anthropic, OpenAI, LangChain, and custom agents.
16 guides
A specific problem, the documented thinkers who actually solve it, and what to run today, for the calls that don't wait for a training budget.
Learning a Hard Skill as an Adult
Why adult skill-learning stalls differently than it did in school, and three documented approaches, from Oakley, Ericsson, and Bloom, for making real progress.
Deciding on a Real Career Change
How to think clearly about leaving a career that no longer fits, and three documented approaches, from Drucker, Frankl, and Grant, for the decision itself.
Having the Conversation You Keep Avoiding
What to actually do before the conversation you've been putting off for weeks, and three documented approaches, from Voss, Rogers, and Satir, for the ones that can't stay avoided.
Staying Focused When Everything Feels Urgent
Why urgency crowds out what actually matters, and three documented approaches, from Newport, Covey, and Deming, for telling real urgency from noise.
Recovering a Project That's Gone Badly Wrong
What to actually do when a project is visibly failing, and three documented approaches, from Kranz, Shackleton, and Edmondson, for recovery rather than blame.
Keeping Your Best People From Leaving
Why your strongest performers leave quietly before anyone notices, and three documented approaches, from Edmondson, McCord, and Bock, for retention that isn't just a counteroffer.
Staying Calm When Everything Is Going Wrong
What actually produces calm under real pressure, and three documented approaches, from Hadfield, Kranz, and Marcus Aurelius, for the moments that matter most.
Winning Clients Without Free Pitching
How to win new business without giving away free strategic work, and three documented approaches, from Enns, Baker, and Maister, for earning trust before the contract.
Delegation for Founders Who Can't Let Go
Why founders keep doing the work they should have handed off months ago, and three documented approaches, from Grove, Drucker, and Fried, for delegating without losing quality or control.
Feedback People Actually Hear
Why most feedback gets nodded at and then ignored, and three documented approaches, from Scott, Edmondson, and Rogers, for feedback that actually changes behavior.
Making Decisions You Can't Take Back
How to think clearly about a decision with no undo button, and three documented approaches, from Kahneman, Munger, and Dalio, for irreversible calls. Not financial advice.
Meetings That Produce Nothing
Why most meetings end with everyone agreeing and nothing changing, and three documented approaches, from de Bono, Lencioni, and Parker, for meetings that actually decide something.
Negotiating When You Have No Leverage
What to actually do when the other side holds all the power, and three documented approaches, from Voss, Mandela, and Ginsburg, for negotiating from a weak position.
Pricing Your Work When Money Talk Is Hard
Why naming your price feels harder than doing the work itself, and three documented approaches, from Enns, Weiss, and Hormozi, for pricing conversations that don't end in a discount.
Procrastinating on the Work That Actually Matters
Why the most important work is usually the easiest to avoid, and three documented approaches, from Tharp, Clear, and Newport, for actually starting it.
Saying No to a Client Without Losing Them
How to decline a client request, a free pitch, a scope-creep ask, without the relationship souring. Three documented approaches from Maister, Enns, and Voss, plus prompts you can run today.