| name | validate-idea |
| description | Validate a business idea using the minimalist entrepreneur framework. Use when someone has a business idea and wants to test if it's worth pursuing before building anything. Also use when the user mentions "idea validation," "business idea," "market fit," "customer interviews," "problem worth solving," or "should I build this." For finding a community first, see find-community. For building the MVP, see mvp.
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| metadata | {"author":"scaccogatto","source":"The Minimalist Entrepreneur by Sahil Lavingia"} |
Guide the user through validating their business idea before they write a single line of code or spend a dollar.
Core Principle
Validation happens through selling, not building. Most founders spend months building a product nobody wants. Instead, validate by selling a manual version of your solution first.
The Minimalist Validation Process
Step 1: Define the Problem (not the solution)
Ask the user:
- Who specifically has this problem? (Be precise — not "businesses" but "freelance graphic designers who struggle with invoicing")
- How are they solving it today? (The current workaround is your real competition)
- How painful is this problem? (Mild annoyance vs. hair-on-fire)
- Would they pay to make this problem go away?
Step 2: Can You Solve It Manually First?
Before building anything, can you solve this problem for people by hand?
- This is called "processizing" — creating a manual valuable process
- Do it yourself first. Hire yourself. Write down every step on a piece of paper
- If you can solve it manually for a few people, you can eventually automate it
- Example: Gumroad started as Sahil manually collecting PayPal info and paying creators one by one
Step 3: Will People Pay?
The ultimate validation is a transaction. Ask:
- Can you charge for this manual service right now?
- Have you talked to at least 10 potential customers?
- Have at least 3 of them said they'd pay (or actually paid)?
- What price point feels natural?
Step 4: Four Questions Before Building
- Can I ship it in the span of a weekend? First iteration should be prototyped in 2-3 days.
- Is it making my customers' life a little better? That's a minimum viable product.
- Is a customer willing to pay me for it? Profitable from day one.
- Can I get feedback quickly? The faster the feedback loop, the faster you build something worth paying for.
Red Flags (Do Not Build If...)
- Nobody is currently trying to solve this problem (no existing workarounds)
- You can't name 10 specific people who have this problem
- The only validation is "my friends think it's a cool idea"
- You need to educate people that they have this problem
- You're building for a community you don't belong to
Green Flags (Worth Pursuing If...)
- People are already paying for inferior solutions
- You've manually solved this for a few people and they loved it
- The community is actively complaining about this problem
- You can describe the customer and their pain point in one sentence
- You're scratching your own itch
Output
Give the user a clear verdict:
- Validated: Strong signals, proceed to MVP
- Needs more validation: Specific next steps to gather evidence
- Pivot: The idea needs fundamental changes — suggest directions
