Writing a Question You Could Be Surprised By
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Discovery and User Research for Product Managers
Module 1
Why Most User Research Changes Nothing
The Four Wastes
Discovery Versus Validation
What Research Can and Cannot Tell You
The Shape of the Work
What This Course Covers
Module 2
Knowing What You're Trying to Find Out
The Question Behind the Question
Writing a Question You Could Be Surprised By
Deciding What You'd Do With Each Answer
Exercise 1: Write a Real Research Question
Module 3
Choosing the Method
Attitudes Versus Behaviour
Six Methods
How Many People, Honestly
Mixing Methods Without Doubling the Work
Exercise 2: Pick Your Method
Module 4
Finding People to Talk To
Where Five People Come From
The Message That Gets Replies
Screening Without Turning People Away
Incentives, Scheduling and No-Shows
Exercise 3: Recruit Five People
Module 5
Running an Interview Without Leading It
The Four Questions
Past Behaviour, Not Future Intention
Silence and Follow-Ups
The Phrases to Never Say
Exercise 4: Run Your First Interview
Module 6
Making Sense of What You Heard
Why Synthesis Is Where Research Dies
From Words to Findings
The Frequency Rule
Finding, Insight, Implication
Exercise 5: Synthesise Properly
Module 7
Research That Isn't Interviews
Watching People Work
Mining What You Already Have
What Usage Data Can and Can't Tell You
Surveys, and How They Mislead
Exercise 6: Use a Method That Isn't an Interview
Module 8
Turning Findings Into Decisions
Why a Research Report Is Usually the Wrong Output
The One-Page Output
Getting Your Team to Act
'But Our Biggest Customer Said'
Exercise 7: Make It Land
Module 9
Making It a Habit
Why Quarterly Studies Fail
A Weekly Rhythm That Survives
Building a Pool
Keeping What You Learn Findable
Module 10
When Research Is the Wrong Move
Five Situations Where It Won't Help
Questions Users Can't Answer
Knowing When You Know Enough
Exercise 9: Audit Your Own Research Plans
Module 11
Run a Real Discovery Study
What You're Producing
Part 1 — The Question and the Plan
Part 2 — The Conversations
Part 3 — Synthesis and the Decision
Module 12
The Prompt Library
Before You Start
Recruiting
Interviewing
Other Methods
Synthesis
Making It Land
Words Explained
Lesson 2
Writing a Question You Could Be Surprised By
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