Architecture Decision Records: Writing Down the Expensive Choices | Clickmasters

Context (forces at play), options considered, decision, consequences accepted. One page, immutable once accepted; superseded by new ADRs, never edited into fiction.

Backfill the top ten load-bearing decisions from memory now — imperfect records beat none — then require ADRs at design review going forward.

Skipping the discipline this article describes until an incident, audit, or stalled project forces it — every practice above is cheaper adopted early than retrofitted under pressure.