# Refinement & Evaluation Criteria

Use this rubric during Phase 2 (Evaluate & Converge) to stress-test idea directions. Not every criterion applies to every idea — use judgment about which dimensions matter most for the specific context.

## Core Evaluation Dimensions

### 1. User Value

The most important dimension. If the value isn't clear, nothing else matters.

**Painkiller vs. Vitamin:**

- **Painkiller:** Solves an acute, frequent problem. Users will actively seek this out. They'll switch from their current solution. Signs: people describe the problem with emotion, they've built workarounds, they'll pay for a solution.
- **Vitamin:** Nice to have. Makes something marginally better. Users won't go out of their way. Signs: people nod politely, say "that's cool," then don't change behavior.

**Questions to ask:**

- Can you name 3 specific people who have this problem right now?
- What are they doing today instead? (The real competitor is always the current workaround.)
- Would they switch from their current approach? What would make them switch?
- How often do they encounter this problem? (Daily problems > monthly problems)
- Is this a "pull" problem (users are asking for this) or a "push" problem (you think they should want this)?

**Red flags:**

- "Everyone could use this" — if you can't name a specific user, the value isn't clear
- "It's like X but better" — marginal improvements rarely drive adoption
- The problem is real but rare — high intensity but low frequency rarely justifies a product

### 2. Feasibility

Can you actually build this? Not just technically, but practically.

**Technical feasibility:**

- Does the core technology exist and work reliably?
- What's the hardest technical problem? Is it a known-hard problem or a novel one?
- Are there dependencies on third parties, APIs, or data sources you don't control?
- What's the minimum technical stack needed? (If the answer is "a lot," that's a signal.)

**Resource feasibility:**

- What's the minimum team/effort to build an MVP?
- Does it require specialized expertise you don't have?
- Are there regulatory, legal, or compliance requirements?

**Time-to-value:**

- How quickly can you get something in front of users?
- Is there a version that delivers value in days/weeks, not months?
- What's the critical path? What has to happen first?

**Red flags:**

- "We just need to solve [very hard research problem] first"
- Multiple dependencies that all need to work simultaneously
- MVP still requires months of work — likely not minimal enough

### 3. Differentiation

What makes this genuinely different? Not better — _different_.

**Questions to ask:**

- If a user described this to a friend, what would they say? Is that description compelling?
- What's the one thing this does that nothing else does? (If you can't name one, that's a problem.)
- Is this differentiation durable? Can a competitor copy it in a week?
- Is the difference something users actually care about, or just something builders find interesting?

**Types of differentiation (strongest to weakest):**

1. **New capability:** Does something that was previously impossible
2. **10x improvement:** So much better on a key dimension that it changes behavior
3. **New audience:** Brings an existing capability to people who were excluded
4. **New context:** Works in a situation where existing solutions fail
5. **Better UX:** Same capability, dramatically simpler experience
6. **Cheaper:** Same thing, lower cost (weakest — easily competed away)

**Red flags:**

- Differentiation is entirely about technology, not user experience
- "We're faster/cheaper/prettier" without a structural reason why
- The feature that differentiates is not the feature users care most about

## Assumption Audit

For every idea direction, explicitly list assumptions in three categories:

### Must Be True (Dealbreakers)

Assumptions that, if wrong, kill the idea entirely. These need validation before building.

Example: "Users will share their data with us" — if they won't, the entire product doesn't work.

### Should Be True (Important)

Assumptions that significantly impact success but don't kill the idea. You can adjust the approach if these are wrong.

Example: "Users prefer self-serve over talking to a person" — if wrong, you need a different go-to-market, but the core product can still work.

### Might Be True (Nice to Have)

Assumptions about secondary features or optimizations. Don't validate these until the core is proven.

Example: "Users will want to share their results with teammates" — a growth feature, not a core value proposition.

## Decision Framework

When choosing between directions, rank on this matrix:

|                | High Feasibility | Low Feasibility |
| -------------- | ---------------- | --------------- |
| **High Value** | Do this first    | Worth the risk  |
| **Low Value**  | Only if trivial  | Don't do this   |

Then use differentiation as the tiebreaker between options in the same quadrant.

## MVP Scoping Principles

When defining MVP scope for the chosen direction:

1. **One job, done well.** The MVP should nail exactly one user job. Not three jobs done partially.
2. **The riskiest assumption first.** The MVP's primary purpose is to test the assumption most likely to be wrong.
3. **Time-box, not feature-list.** "What can we build and test in [timeframe]?" is better than "What features do we need?"
4. **The 'Not Doing' list is mandatory.** Explicitly name what you're cutting and why. This prevents scope creep and forces honest prioritization.
5. **If it's not embarrassing, you waited too long.** The first version should feel incomplete to the builder. If it doesn't, you over-built.
