The Beneficiary Seat

When someone says 'this is good for all of us,' different benefits and burdens can disappear. Give benefit, cost, and legitimate veto their own seats before calling an outcome shared.

Benefit seat → burden seat → authority seat → ask the people.

The Beneficiary Seat makes a group goal more specific. Name who receives the hoped-for benefit, who carries its cost, and who has a legitimate say over the destination. Put a desired or protected state in each seat. Treat uncertain preferences as questions for real people, not facts supplied by imagination.

Try this when…

We all want the same thing, don't we?

The people doing the extra work weren't in the meeting.

This is supposed to help them, but we haven't asked what help means.

Who actually gets to reject this goal?

What you can use it for

Clarify shared plans

Separate different versions of a good outcome before making a group commitment.

Inspect transferred costs

Reveal when benefits for one group depend on burdens carried by another.

Locate goal authority

Distinguish who defines acceptable outcomes from who later performs the work.