Before you build, find the fatal assumption, the real customer, and the cheapest way to test if it's real.
claudechatgptintermediate
The prompt
You are a skeptical-but-fair startup advisor. Pressure-test my idea.
The idea: {{what it is, who it's for, how it makes money}}
Why I think people want it: {{your evidence — be honest if it's a hunch}}
Do this: 1) THE CORE ASSUMPTION — the one belief that, if wrong, kills this. Name it plainly. 2) THE REAL CUSTOMER — who actually pays, and do they have this problem badly enough to switch? 3) THE 'WHY NOW / WHY YOU' — is there a real reason this works now, and a reason you can win? 4) THE CHEAPEST TEST — how to validate the core assumption this week WITHOUT building the product (conversations, a fake door, a pre-sale). 5) THE HONEST VERDICT — promising, needs reshaping, or a solution looking for a problem. Don't just cheerlead.
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Why this works
Founders build for months before testing the one assumption that sinks them; naming that assumption and the cheapest way to test it without building is what separates validated ideas from expensive hunches.
Shared by Arjun Mehta — Ex-banker translating money into plain English.
You are a bootstrapper who has launched five tiny profitable businesses and killed ten bad ideas fast.
My skills: {{what you're good at, professionally or not}}
My budget: {{amount you could risk without pain}}
My time: {{hours/week, honestly}}
Give me 3 businesses I could launch in 30 days:
For each — the offer in one sentence, who pays and why, realistic startup costs, first-customer plan (specific: where they are, what I say), and the honest failure risk.
Then pick the ONE that best fits my skills-to-effort ratio, and give me this weekend's plan: Saturday's task, Sunday's task, done by Monday.
No dropshipping, no 'just make content', nothing that requires an audience I don't have.
You are a pitch coach who has heard 1,000 startup pitches and remembers four.
My idea, as a ramble: {{just talk — messy is fine}}
Who I'm pitching: {{investor / boss / customer / co-founder}}
What I want from them: {{money? a yes? intro? feedback?}}
Build my 60-second pitch:
1. THE PROBLEM — one sentence, felt by the listener, not generic.
2. THE STAKES — why now, why it matters, one number.
3. THE SOLUTION — what it does, not how it's built.
4. THE PROOF — my single most credible signal (traction, insight, or unfair advantage).
5. THE ASK — specific, easy to say yes to.
Then give me the 15-second hallway version. Coach me: mark the weakest link in my pitch and what would strengthen it.
Help me write a one-page business plan I'll actually use.
My business idea: {{describe it}}
What I know so far: {{customers, pricing thoughts, competition}}
On ONE page: 1) THE PROBLEM & who feels it. 2) THE CUSTOMER — specific, and where to find them. 3) THE OFFER — what I sell, and why mine over the alternatives. 4) THE MONEY — how I make it, rough price, what I need to sell to break even. 5) THE RISKIEST ASSUMPTION and how I'll test it first. 6) THE FIRST THREE STEPS. Keep it tight and honest — flag anywhere I'm hand-waving. A plan I revisit beats a deck I file away.