The Spy's Guide Briefing
See what everyone else is missing.
Twice a week, former CIA officer John Braddock applies analytical frameworks to what's happening in the world. No hedging. No both-sides. Tells you what to watch for next.
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- John Braddock
What you get
See what’s really happening.
Twice a week, a current situation - geopolitics, business, strategy - gets run through the frameworks. Not surface-level commentary. A specific assessment of what’s happening, what the games are, and what comes next.
If you’re in that game, the actions to take.
Each issue gives you something specific to watch for. Not opinions. Not takes. A framework, a conclusion, and a next move. The kind of analysis that drives decisions and action.
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Full archive access from day one. Every framework application. Every analysis. Searchable and yours.
No filler. Every sentence earns its place.
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Spy's Guide Assessment Prep
This is the tool I send someone before a strategic consultation. You're facing a negotiation. A risky decision. A personnel call. A competitive move. A family decision. The Assessment Prep walks you through which framework applies. Which questions to ask. How to run your situation through the same process I use.
Frameworks Quick-Reference Card
Six frameworks on one page. When to use each one. The key questions for each. Print it. Keep it on your desk. Use it before your next meeting.
Sample issue - MAY 7, 2026
Three moves. Three days. One Zero-Sum Game.
Sometimes a negotiation has a Zero-Sum game at its center.
Both sides say they want a deal. Both sides make proposals. Both sides use the language of compromise. But underneath the diplomacy, there's a person, place, or thing that both sides need. And there's no way to split it up.
When that happens, the proposals aren't negotiations. They're positioning.
That's what's happening in the Strait of Hormuz right now.
The game between Iran and the U.S. is being played over a place.
That place is twenty-one miles wide at its narrowest point. Twenty percent of the world's oil passes through it. Gas prices are rising because it's closed.
It's the Strait of Hormuz. Except the Iranians call it the "Persian Gulf Strait." The two sides can't even agree on the name.
The shipping lanes run mostly through Omani territorial waters. Two-mile-wide lanes in each direction, separated by a two-mile buffer zone. Legally, it's an international waterway running through an area shared by Iran and Oman.
Iran's control doesn't come from owning the water. It comes from three things.
The islands. In 1971, Iran seized the Greater and Lesser Tunbs and controls Qeshm and Hormuz islands. They sit right on top of the navigation channels. That extended Iran's military reach across the strait regardless of where the legal boundaries are.
Bandar Abbas. Iran's major naval base sits on the north shore. Fast boats, missiles, and drones can reach the shipping lanes in minutes.
Geography. The water is shallower on the Iranian side. Iran can lay mines and deploy small boats that are hard to detect in shallow coastal waters.
Iran doesn't own the strait. They dominate it. That's a distinction worth understanding. Because it means control can shift without borders changing.
Three moves in three days.
On Sunday, Iran submitted a 14-point peace proposal through Pakistan. Lift sanctions. End the blockade. Withdraw forces. Stop Israel's operations in Lebanon.
On Monday, Trump launched "Project Freedom." U.S. Navy destroyers escorting commercial ships through the strait. Two American-flagged vessels made it through.
On Tuesday, Iran announced the "Persian Gulf Strait Authority." Permits and tolls for any ship passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
Three days. Three moves. Each one a play for control of the Strait.
Reviews of John Braddock's work
“Holds your attention and makes you think. Effective tricks-of-the-trade for making decisions. Concise, accessible, and best of all, GRIPPING!”
- Eric
“A great introduction to critical thinking in a very practical, day-to-day way. Although, from the perspective of a spy, it can be applied to all pragmatic aspects of daily living.”
- Shaun
“A practical read that's equal parts pragmatic and entertainment. The author juxtaposes his sound academic wisdom with a short story that reads like a teaser to a spy thriller. Great insight from a guy you'd love to sit and have a beer with.”
- Jim
About the author
John Braddock was a case officer at the CIA. He recruited and handled sources on weapons proliferation, counter-terrorism and high-impact issues. A former university research fellow, he is now a strategy consultant and the bestselling author of 5 books on the thinking tools of spies.
Subscribe
Next issue drops Friday.
Annual
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$21/mo
No risk. Read the first four issues. If they're not worth $21, reply and we'll refund your first month.
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