Hidden Move
find the move you didn't see

Every shit situation hides a move.
Sometimes you just need help spotting it.

Drop in what's going on. Get back three cards — a reframe, one move you can make today, and the honest bit nobody says out loud. Not toxic positivity. Not therapy. Just the angle you might have missed when you were too close to it.

A small thing built by David Allsop after one too many "wtf now" moments. · see five real examples →

One prompt in, three cards back — no follow-up box, no chat. Skip full names, account numbers, anything that identifies someone else — the reframe works fine without them.

Severity

Your situation is sent to an AI model to generate the cards, then forgotten. No account, no database. We log how long the call took and how long your text was, never the text itself. Save a card to your phone only if you want to keep it.

Three angles on it sample · yours appear here

card 1 of 3
"An ex-partner sent another unreasonable demand thirty minutes before a hospital appointment. I do not have time for the drama triangle today."
the reframe

This is the excuse to make her admin someone else's job.

You've been the channel she pushes against for years. A formal arrangement removes the channel. Not because you're avoiding her — because the channel itself is the problem.

Open a Child Maintenance Service case today. 15 mins online · they calculate it, they collect it, you stop replying to manipulative messages about money
the action

The "I've spoken to people" line is a tell, not a threat.

People who've actually consulted someone cite the someone. The vagueness is the pressure tactic. Naming the pattern out loud — even just to yourself — defangs it.

Reply once, in writing, factually. "Happy for CMS to assess. I'll forward this thread to them." Then stop responding on this topic.
the honest one

You're allowed to feel shit about it for an hour before doing anything.

Not every situation needs to be reframed into an opportunity in the same five minutes. The reframe is real. The feeling is also real. They're not in competition.

Park it until lunchtime. Then act. Set a one-hour timer. Walk, work, distract. The CMS form will still be there at 1pm — and you'll fill it in calmer.

Free, always.

If it helped, throw a couple of quid in the cup. Keeps the lights on, keeps it ad-free.

Tip what it was worth →