For founders & operators

Decision tools, operating references, and two practical workflows for testing an offer and reviewing a team’s work.

2 workflows
19 references
Strategy · Operations · Customer evidence

Practical workflows

Start with the work

Each workflow defines the starting point, steps, completion test, and the specific role of every linked resource.

Starting point: You can name a specific person, a problem they may have, and the offer you are considering.
What you need: Required: a way to speak with potential customers and a document for notes. A spreadsheet or paper works; the tools below are optional.

Steps

Write a claim you could disprove
Name the audience, the recurring problem, and the existing workaround. Write what evidence would make you change your mind before arranging conversations. Start with one assumption, such as whether the problem is frequent enough to matter.
Invite people who face the situation
Explain that you want to understand their current work. Ask permission to take notes; ask separately before recording. Collect only the contact information needed to arrange the interview. Include people who might disagree with your idea.
Ask about the last real occurrence
Ask: “When did this last happen?”, “What did you do?”, “What did it cost in time or money?”, and “What have you already tried?” Follow concrete examples. Save a demonstration of your offer until you have understood the current behavior; separate those reactions from the earlier evidence.
Separate observations from interpretation
Record a short quote or described action, the situation, and any contradictory evidence. Keep your inference in a different column. Use anonymous participant IDs in a shared sheet. A compliment or hypothetical promise is not evidence of a purchase.
Choose the next test
Review the original decision rule. Decide whether to narrow the audience, revise the problem, test an offer, or stop. Write why and what is still unknown. A small set of interviews informs the next experiment; it does not establish market size or guarantee demand.

The role of each resource

These are options for a specific role; you do not need to adopt all of them.

When it is done

You have a stated assumption, notes that distinguish evidence from interpretation, and one next decision with its uncertainties. Unfavorable evidence is a useful result.

Teaching example

An evidence table

Fictional teaching example about a client-approval service. These are invented notes, not customer research or LV results.

Observation	Interpretation	What to check
P01 describes chasing a missing approval in yesterday’s project.	There may be a coordination problem.	How often does this happen, and who bears the cost?
P02 says the current shared document works well.	The proposed problem may not apply to this person.	What differs between these working arrangements?
P03 calls the proposed idea “interesting.”	This is an opinion, not evidence of demand.	Return to a recent event and the actual workaround.

The next decision could be to study one narrower approval process before building anything. The table alone does not justify a sales forecast.

Checklist and template

Test an offer with customer interviews

[ ] Name one audience and one assumption.
[ ] Write the evidence that would change the decision.
[ ] Arrange relevant conversations and agree how to take notes.
[ ] Ask about actual events, workarounds, and costs.
[ ] Record contradictory evidence and keep inferences separate.
[ ] Choose the next test and record what remains unknown.

Audience:
Problem assumption:
Evidence that would change my mind:

Participant ID / date:
Last real occurrence:
Current workaround:
Observed cost or effort:
Quote or described behavior:
Contradictory evidence:
My interpretation:

Decision: continue / narrow / revise / stop
Reason:
Unknowns:
Next test / owner / review date:

Starting point: A team has ongoing work and needs to decide what deserves attention this week.
What you need: Required: the current work list and one shared note. Use the team’s existing tracker; no new subscription is necessary.

Steps

Collect changes before the meeting
Ask owners to update completed work, obstacles, and decisions they need. Link to the actual work so the meeting does not become a round of status readings.
Compare progress with the intended result
Review the previous commitments. Separate a completed task from an achieved result. Mark missing evidence and unfinished work without rewriting the original goal.
Resolve the decisions that block work
For each issue, write the options and decide, delegate the decision, or assign a specific investigation. Record what will be postponed when a new priority is added.
Close with named commitments
Give each action one accountable owner, a next step, and a review date. Share the decision note and ask owners to correct misunderstandings before leaving.

The role of each resource

These are options for a specific role; you do not need to adopt all of them.

When it is done

Every agreed action has an owner and review date; the note records decisions and deliberate deferrals.

Teaching example

A decision note

Fictional example; use the structure with your own evidence.

Question	Decision	Next action
Should a release include an untested export?	Keep the export out until its result can be checked.	Assign a test owner and review date; update the release note.

The useful output is a recorded decision and an owned next step, even when a release becomes smaller.

Checklist and template

Run a weekly team review

[ ] Update the existing work list.
[ ] Review prior commitments and evidence.
[ ] Decide or assign each blocking question.
[ ] Name owners, next steps, and review dates.

Review date:
Intended result:
What changed:
Evidence / work links:
Open decision / options:
Decision and reason:
Action / owner / review date:
Work deliberately postponed:
Unresolved question:

Using the folder

Founders

Use this folder when the next decision matters more than adding another system. The workflows begin with a concrete question, then point to the smallest set of resources that can help answer it.

What it helps improve

Test assumptions against customer behavior.
Turn team reviews into decisions and owned actions.
Keep evidence, interpretation, and open questions separate.

Where to start

Choose the workflow closest to the decision in front of you. Complete it with the tools your team already uses, then open a suggested resource only when it solves a specific gap.

Selected references

Resources in this folder

These references are here because they have a defined role in the workflows above. Browse by format when you already know which part of the work you need to solve.