second-guess

(idiomatic) to attempt to predict or anticipate.
1957: "As a practical matter, a fertilizer company could not afford to second-guess the Federal Trade Commission or a jury in a triple damage case on so obscure a point." (U.S. Senate)[1]
1995: "MacGregor avoided this trap by refusing to give managers reporting to him the opportunity to second-guess the solution he would be most likely to choose."[2]


(idiomatic)(US) to vet or evaluate; to criticize or correct, often by hindsight, by presuming to have a better idea, method, etc.
1946: "I suppose anybody who keeps a diary and subsequently goes over it for publication has a tremendous temptation to second-guess and make himself look like an oracle."[3]
1959: "Public administration would be hamstrung if courts were free to second-guess reasonable administrative decisions." (U.S. Court of Appeals)[4]
2003: "If you suspect you've stepped over the line, ask a few other copy editors to second-guess your headline." (Editing Today)[5]
Please don't try to second-guess the procedure that we have already refined and adopted.
Once she began listening to her instincts and didn't second-guess herself the entire time, her artwork improved noticeably