Chapters · 3 of 8

About 14 min · Lesson and activity

Chapter 3 of 80 complete

Separate Facts From Inference

Label observed, inferred, human-assessed, and absent evidence with its source and basis.

See the situation

Start with the situation below. Next, we will work through an example together before you try the activity.

Maya · Decision designer

The case

Two records, one sentence, two different facts

Label observed facts, inferences, and human assessments with their source. Do not write one as if it were another.

Both display: "Annual revenue: above threshold"
Record A: From a filing, entered 11 days ago
Record B: Estimated from industry and web presence
Recorded in the decision output: Yes, on both
Recorded on the screen: No

Your task

Classify each statement using its source. Choose a separate field for the revenue estimate.

Need a little guidance?

You’re done when: Later readers can tell which statements were observed versus inferred.

Mixing facts and inference makes confident-looking explanations hard to audit.

Need a reminder? Reopen the worked example

Watch one example first

Telemetry records two logins. A CSM believes the sponsor is engaged based on a call. Both can be useful, but the second is a human assessment, not a telemetry observation.

Why this follows from the evidence

Labels describe the basis of a claim. Preserve the owner and source rather than laundering a judgment into an observed field.

GTM Lab

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Case evidence

Two records, one sentence, two different facts

Both display: "Annual revenue: above threshold"
Record A: From a filing, entered 11 days ago
Record B: Estimated from industry and web presence
Recorded in the decision output: Yes, on both
Recorded on the screen: No

Two records display the same sentence in the same weight. On one it came from a filing. On the other the decision estimated it, recorded that it estimated, and the screen did not say so.

Review workbench

Classify what each statement is

Use the source, not how plausible the sentence sounds. Keep the estimate out of the observed-revenue field.

Same-looking line · three different originsCompare each statement with its source. The labels show the state of this example.

Filing: annual revenue above threshold

Observed · not classified

Source: Company filing, captured 11 days ago

Not checked

Estimated scale from industry and web presence

Inferred · not classified

Source: Industry and public web signals; estimated, not verified

Not checked

CSM says the sponsor is engaged

Human-assessed · not classified

Source: Owned by Priya Shah; based on a customer call not stored as a CRM field

Not checked

Filing: annual revenue above threshold · source: Company filing · captured 11 days ago

Estimated scale from industry and web presence · source: Industry and public web signals · no verified revenue value

CSM says the sponsor is engaged · source: CSM note from a customer call · off-system judgment

Where should the estimated revenue appear?

Proposed field writeCompare the original state with the proposed change. This preview does not change live records.

Proposed field write
Item	Before	Proposed	Why
CRM annual revenue	Observed value from company filing	Choose a destination	The field name and provenance should tell later consumers what kind of value they are reading.

CRM annual revenue: BeforeObserved value from company filing; ProposedChoose a destination; WhyThe field name and provenance should tell later consumers what kind of value they are reading.

Changes save in this browser as you work.

Optional: inspect the chapter check choices

Work the case · 0 of 2 sections drafted

Never let a guess look like an observation

Compare these alternatives one section at a time. Check a choice to see its consequence; the draft summary below keeps the proposed changes together.

Step 1 of 2

The estimate was properly recorded in the decision output. Why is this still a failure?

The estimate could be wrongThe decision should not have estimated at allFrom the reviewer’s side there is no difference between a marked inference rendered as a fact and the system making it up

This is a proposed draft until the chapter check runs. Selecting a choice alone does not complete the chapter.

2c · Proposed

Review record draft

Review record draft · current draftCompare the original state with the proposed change. This preview does not change live records.

Review record draft · current draft
Item	Before	Proposed	Why
The estimate was properly recorded in the decision output. Why is this still a failure?	No saved change in this exercise draft	Not drafted yet	Choose a proposal to see what it would add to the draft.
Where must an inferred value never be written?	No saved change in this exercise draft	Not drafted yet	Choose a proposal to see what it would add to the draft.

The estimate was properly recorded in the decision output. Why is this still a failure?: BeforeNo saved change in this exercise draft; ProposedNot drafted yet; WhyChoose a proposal to see what it would add to the draft.
Where must an inferred value never be written?: BeforeNo saved change in this exercise draft; ProposedNot drafted yet; WhyChoose a proposal to see what it would add to the draft.

A choice appears here as a proposal, not as evidence that a live system changed.

Your place saves as you go.

Chapter 3 of 80 complete