vision

Vision

Create vision documents that anchor all subsequent work.

When to Use

• Starting a new product or feature
• Clarifying direction for an existing initiative
• Company-level strategic planning
• Any time clarity on "why" and "where" is needed

Dependencies

• None - this is the first stage in the flow

Book Triggers

Reference: [[books/product-innovation.md]]

• Apply "Inspired" vision principles
• Use "Escaping the Build Trap" outcome focus

Reference: [[books/startup-business.md]]

• Apply "Lean Startup" hypothesis framing
• Use "Rework" for simplicity and focus

Vision Scope Levels

Vision documents scale based on scope:

The same structure applies at all levels, with depth varying by scope.

Minimum Vision Requirements

Every vision document must answer:

1. Where we are - Current state
2. What the problem is - Even high level
3. How painful it is - Qualify severity
4. Where we want to go - End goal
5. Some alternatives - Non-exhaustive options
6. Constraints - The more complete, the better

Vision Document Template

# Vision: [Title]

## TLDR

[2-4 sentences: The problem, the direction, and why it matters now.]

## Current State

[Where are we today? What's working? What's not?]

## Problem

### What's Wrong
[The specific problem or opportunity]

### Why It Matters
[Impact on users, business, team]

### Severity
[How painful is this? Quantify if possible.]

## Desired Future State

[Where do we want to be? What does success look like?]

## Success Criteria

[How will we know we've succeeded?]

- [ ] [Measurable criterion 1]
- [ ] [Measurable criterion 2]
- [ ] [Measurable criterion 3]

## Alternatives Considered

### Option A: [Name]
- Description: [Brief explanation]
- Pros: [Benefits]
- Cons: [Drawbacks]

### Option B: [Name]
- Description: [Brief explanation]
- Pros: [Benefits]
- Cons: [Drawbacks]

### Recommendation
[Which option and why]

## Constraints

### Non-Negotiables
- [Must have / cannot change]

### Resources
- [Time, budget, people available]

### Technical
- [System limitations, dependencies]

### Business
- [Regulatory, contractual, strategic]

## Scope

**In Scope:**
- [What this vision covers]

**Out of Scope:**
- [What this vision explicitly excludes]

## Open Questions

- [Unresolved questions that need answers]

## Next Steps

- [ ] [Immediate next action]
- [ ] [Following action]

Discovery Process

Approach: Discovery, Not Checklist

Don't mechanically fill in a form. Instead:

1. Start with what's known

   • What prompted this initiative?
   • What's the pain or opportunity?

2. Discover gaps through questions

   • What's unclear?
   • What assumptions are being made?
   • What would change the direction?

3. Ask the founder/stakeholder

   • Surface questions naturally
   • Capture answers in the appropriate section

Key Discovery Questions

Problem Discovery:

• "What triggered this now?"
• "Who experiences this problem?"
• "How are they solving it today?"
• "What happens if we don't address this?"

Success Discovery:

• "How would we know this succeeded?"
• "What would make this a failure?"
• "What's the minimum viable success?"

Constraint Discovery:

• "What can't change?"
• "What resources are available?"
• "When does this need to be done?"
• "What decisions do you want to make personally?"

Vision Quality Checklist

Before finalizing:

• TLDR captures essence in 2-4 sentences
• Problem is specific, not vague
• Severity is qualified (ideally quantified)
• Success criteria are measurable
• At least 2 alternatives considered
• Constraints are explicit
• Scope is clear (in and out)
• Open questions are surfaced

Output Location

projects/{project}/docs/vision.md

Or for company-level:

company/docs/vision.md

Integration

With product-development-flow.md

• Vision is the first stage
• All other stages depend on vision existing
• Vision document is referenced throughout

With project-kickoff.md

• Kickoff interview produces vision inputs
• Vision skill structures the outputs

With brainstorm.md

• Vision anchors brainstorming
• Brainstorm explores options within vision constraints

With prd.md

• PRD references vision for context
• PRD elaborates on chosen alternative

Anti-Patterns

• Solution masquerading as vision - Start with problem, not solution
• Vague success - "Make it better" isn't measurable
• Missing constraints - Constraints shape solutions
• Single option - Always consider alternatives
• Feature list - Vision is about outcomes, not features
• Skipping severity - Pain level affects priority