jtbd-interview

name	jtbd-interview
version	1.0.0
description	Generate a customized Switch interview script based on your product context and existing evidence gaps. Outputs a ready-to-use markdown guide with Moesta's timeline reconstruction questions and force-probing techniques. Use when: "interview script", "jtbd interview", "interview guide", "how to interview".
allowed-tools	["Bash","Read","Write","Edit","Glob","Grep","AskUserQuestion"]

Preamble

# Detect .jtbd/ directory
_JTBD_DIR=".jtbd"
_HAS_JTBD="no"
[ -d "$_JTBD_DIR" ] && _HAS_JTBD="yes"
echo "JTBD_DIR: $_HAS_JTBD"

# Detect gstack (optional integration)
_HAS_GSTACK="no"
[ -d "$HOME/.claude/skills/gstack" ] && _HAS_GSTACK="yes"
_ROOT=$(git rev-parse --show-toplevel 2>/dev/null)
[ -n "$_ROOT" ] && [ -d "$_ROOT/.claude/skills/gstack" ] && _HAS_GSTACK="yes"
echo "GSTACK: $_HAS_GSTACK"

# Detect git
_HAS_GIT="no"
git rev-parse --is-inside-work-tree 2>/dev/null && _HAS_GIT="yes"
echo "GIT: $_HAS_GIT"

# Read manifest if .jtbd/ exists
if [ "$_HAS_JTBD" = "yes" ] && [ -f "$_JTBD_DIR/manifest.yml" ]; then
  echo "--- MANIFEST ---"
  cat "$_JTBD_DIR/manifest.yml"
  echo "--- END MANIFEST ---"
fi

# Count existing switch analyses
if [ "$_HAS_JTBD" = "yes" ] && [ -d "$_JTBD_DIR/switches" ]; then
  _SWITCH_COUNT=$(ls "$_JTBD_DIR/switches/"*.yml 2>/dev/null | wc -l | tr -d ' ')
  echo "SWITCH_COUNT: $_SWITCH_COUNT"
  if [ "$_SWITCH_COUNT" -gt 0 ]; then
    echo "--- EXISTING SWITCHES ---"
    ls "$_JTBD_DIR/switches/"*.yml
    echo "--- END SWITCHES ---"
  fi
else
  echo "SWITCH_COUNT: 0"
fi

Initialize .jtbd/ (if needed)

If JTBD_DIR is no, create the .jtbd/ directory structure before proceeding.

1. Use AskUserQuestion to gather product info:

"No .jtbd/ directory found. I'll create one. What's your product called, and what stage are you at?"

Options:

• A) Set up now (I'll provide product name and stage)
• B) Use defaults (product: "Unknown", stage: "pre-product")

If A: Ask for product name, one-line description, stage (pre-product / has-users / has-paying-customers), target user role, and target user context.

If B: Use defaults.

2. Create the directory structure:

.jtbd/
├── manifest.yml
├── .gitignore
├── raw/
└── switches/

3. Write manifest.yml with the user's answers (or defaults):

schema_version: 1
product:
  name: "{product_name}"
  description: "{description}"
  stage: "{stage}"
target_user:
  role: "{role}"
  context: "{context}"
settings:
  auto_commit: true
  gitignore_raw: true
  evidence_threshold: 6

4. Write .jtbd/.gitignore:

# Raw interview transcripts contain PII - keep out of git by default
raw/

Gather Context

Read existing evidence

If SWITCH_COUNT > 0, read ALL existing switch analysis files from .jtbd/switches/. Analyze them for:

1. Force gaps: Which forces are thin across interviews? (e.g., habit forces often underprobed)
2. Timeline gaps: Which timeline stages are frequently not_discussed?
3. Low-confidence areas: Fields marked confidence: low or inferred: true
4. Missing perspectives: What roles/personas have been interviewed vs. not?
5. Evidence strength patterns: Which evidence_strength dimensions are consistently low?

Store these gaps — they will be used to customize the interview script.

Determine interview context

Use AskUserQuestion:

"Who are you interviewing, and what's the context?"

Options:

• A) Someone who recently switched TO our product
• B) Someone who recently switched AWAY from our product (churned)
• C) Someone who recently switched between competitors (not our product)
• D) Someone who is currently evaluating / hasn't decided yet

Then ask:

"What do you already know about this person?"

Options:

• A) I have their name and role (I'll provide details)
• B) I know their general persona but not specific details
• C) Nothing yet — generate a general script

If A: Collect name, role, company (optional), and any known context about their situation.

If B: Collect the persona description.

Generate the Interview Script

Generate a markdown interview script customized to the context gathered above. The script must follow Moesta's Switch methodology precisely.

Script Structure

The script has 6 sections. Each section has:

• A purpose statement (why you're asking these questions)
• The questions themselves
• Interviewer notes in blockquotes (tips, red flags, follow-up cues)

Section 1: Opening & Rapport (2-3 minutes)

Purpose: Make the interviewee comfortable. Establish that there are no wrong answers. You're interested in their story, not evaluating them.

Generate 2-3 opening questions. These should be warm, easy, and related to their role. Example:

## 1. Opening

**Purpose:** Build rapport. No wrong answers — you want their story.

- "Tell me a bit about your role at {company}. What does a typical day look like?"
- "How long have you been in this role?"

> **Interviewer note:** Keep this under 3 minutes. You're warming up, not interrogating. Match their energy. If they're terse, be terse. If they're chatty, let them talk.

Section 2: Set the Scene (3-5 minutes)

Purpose: Establish what they were using before (the "old way") and get them to describe their world before the switch. This is critical context.

Generate 3-4 questions. Key technique: ask about the situation, not opinions.

## 2. The Old Way

**Purpose:** Understand their world before the switch. What were they using? How did it work?

- "Before you started using {new solution}, what were you using to {do the job}?"
- "Walk me through how that worked on a typical {day/week/month}."
- "How long had you been doing it that way?"

> **Interviewer note:** Listen for workarounds. People compensate for bad tools without realizing it. "Oh, I had a spreadsheet for that" = habit force. Get specific: which spreadsheet? How often? Who maintained it?

Section 3: Timeline Reconstruction (10-15 minutes)

Purpose: This is the core of the Switch interview. Reconstruct the timeline by working backward from the decision.

Generate questions for each timeline stage. Start with the decision and work back to the first thought.

Deciding (start here):

## 3. The Timeline

### 3a. The Decision

**Purpose:** Anchor on the specific moment they decided. Work backward from here.

- "Take me back to the moment you decided to go with {new solution}. Where were you? What was happening?"
- "What specifically tipped you over the edge? Was there a final straw?"
- "Were you considering anything else at that point? What were the other options?"
- "Who else was involved in the decision?"

> **Interviewer note:** Push for specificity. "When was that exactly?" "Was it before or after [event]?" You want dates, locations, people. If they say "we just decided," probe: "Was there a meeting? An email? A conversation?" The decision always has a moment.

Active Looking:

### 3b. Active Looking

- "Before you decided, what did the search look like? Were you actively comparing options?"
- "What triggered you to go from 'this is annoying' to 'I need to find something else'?"
- "What did you Google? Who did you ask? What demos did you sit through?"
- "How long did this phase last?"

> **Interviewer note:** The trigger from passive to active is gold. It's usually a specific event — a bad meeting, a missed deadline, a public embarrassment. Probe until you get the story.

Passive Looking:

### 3c. Passive Looking

- "Before you were actively searching, were you aware that alternatives existed?"
- "How did you first hear about {new solution} or tools like it?"
- "How long were you in this 'I know there's better stuff out there but I'm not doing anything about it' phase?"

> **Interviewer note:** This phase can last months or years. People tolerate a lot. The duration tells you how strong the habit forces are.

First Thought:

### 3d. First Thought

- "Can you remember the very first time you thought 'this isn't working'? What happened?"
- "Was there a specific event, or was it a slow build?"

> **Interviewer note:** The first thought is often surprisingly specific — a crash, a bad report, an embarrassing moment in front of a boss. If they say "I don't remember," try: "Was it before or after [major event]?" to jog memory.

Section 4: Force Probing (10-15 minutes)

Purpose: Now that the timeline is established, probe each force explicitly. The timeline questions will have surfaced some forces naturally — this section fills gaps.

Push questions:

## 4. The Four Forces

### 4a. Push — What was broken?

- "What was the most frustrating thing about {old solution}?"
- "Tell me about a specific time it let you down."
- "What did that cost you — time, money, reputation, stress?"

> **Interviewer note:** Push forces must be specific events, not vague feelings. "It was slow" → "Tell me about a time the slowness actually caused a problem." Get the story, the stakes, the people involved.

Pull questions:

### 4b. Pull — What attracted you?

- "What was the first thing about {new solution} that caught your attention?"
- "When you imagined using it, what did you picture being different?"
- "Was there a specific feature or moment in the demo/trial that made you think 'this is it'?"

> **Interviewer note:** Pull is about the *imagined future*, not features. "Real-time dashboards" is a feature. "My CEO can get his own numbers without asking me" is pull. Keep asking "why does that matter?" until you hit the emotional payoff.

Anxiety questions:

### 4c. Anxiety — What scared you?

- "What almost stopped you from switching?"
- "What was the scariest part of the transition?"
- "Was there a moment where you almost backed out?"
- "What could have gone wrong?"

> **Interviewer note:** People don't volunteer anxiety. You have to ask directly. Silence after the question is fine — let them think. Common anxieties: data loss, team resistance, looking foolish, wasted money, learning curve. If they say "nothing," try: "If you had to name one risk, even a small one..."

Habit questions:

### 4d. Habit — What kept you on the old way?

- "Was there anything about {old solution} that you actually liked or would miss?"
- "Did anyone on your team resist the change? Why?"
- "Were there workarounds you'd built that you had to give up?"
- "What would have happened if you'd just... kept doing what you were doing?"

> **Interviewer note:** Habit is the most underprobed force. People build elaborate workarounds and forget they're workarounds. "My analyst had a whole process" = someone's entire job was compensating for a broken tool. That's a habit force AND a push force.

Section 5: The Job Story (2-3 minutes)

Purpose: Validate your understanding by reflecting back what you heard.

## 5. Reflect Back

**Purpose:** Confirm you understood the story correctly.

- "Let me play this back to you. It sounds like [summarize the situation], and you wanted [motivation], so you could [outcome]. Does that sound right?"
- "Is there anything I'm missing?"

> **Interviewer note:** This is your job story draft. If they correct you, update it. Their correction is often more precise than your summary. Write it down verbatim.

Section 6: Wrap-up (2-3 minutes)

## 6. Wrap-up

- "If you could go back and give yourself advice at the start of this process, what would you say?"
- "Is there anything I should have asked that I didn't?"
- "Thanks — this was incredibly helpful."

> **Interviewer note:** The "advice to yourself" question often surfaces the strongest anxiety or habit force. The "anything I missed" question catches things you didn't know to ask about.

Customization Rules

Apply these customizations based on the context gathered:

If interview context is "switched AWAY" (churned):

• Flip the framing: the "old way" is YOUR product, the "new solution" is whatever they switched to
• Add questions: "What would have kept you?" and "When did you first think about leaving?"
• The push forces are about YOUR product's failures — this is painful but valuable

If interview context is "evaluating / hasn't decided":

• Focus on Sections 2 (old way), 3d (first thought), and 4a-4b (push and pull)
• Skip 3a (deciding) — it hasn't happened yet
• Add: "What would need to be true for you to make a change?" and "What's stopping you right now?"

If existing switch analyses have evidence gaps:

• Add targeted questions for the weak areas. For example:
  • If habit forces are thin across interviews: add 2 extra habit questions and a bold interviewer note: "⚠️ Habit forces are thin in your existing data. Spend extra time here."
  • If timeline stages are frequently not_discussed: add extra probes for those specific stages
  • If evidence_strength.direct_quotes is consistently low: add a note about getting verbatim quotes

If manifest has product/target_user info:

• Replace generic placeholders ({old solution}, {new solution}, {do the job}) with product-specific language
• Tailor the "Old Way" questions to the target user's role and context

Red Flags Reference

Always include this section at the end of the script:

## Red Flags to Watch For

These patterns indicate you're getting low-quality data. Redirect when you spot them.

| Red Flag | What It Sounds Like | Redirect |
|----------|---------------------|----------|
| **Hypothetical language** | "I would...", "I think I'd..." | "I want to hear what actually happened. Take me back to that moment." |
| **Vague emotions** | "It was frustrating", "I was happy" | "Tell me about a specific time you felt that way. What happened?" |
| **Category answers** | "We needed better analytics" | "What specifically couldn't you do? Walk me through the last time that was a problem." |
| **No dates or people** | "At some point we decided..." | "Was that before or after [event]? Who was in the room?" |
| **Feature lists** | "It has real-time dashboards and API access and..." | "Which of those mattered most to YOU? Why that one?" |
| **Pleasing the interviewer** | "Your product is great because..." | "I appreciate that, but I'm more interested in the messy middle. What almost stopped you?" |

Interview Tips

Always include this section:

## Tips for a Great Switch Interview

1. **Record everything.** Use Fireflies, Otter, or your phone. You cannot take notes and listen at the same time.
2. **Shut up.** The best interviewers talk 20% of the time. Ask the question, then wait. Silence is productive.
3. **Follow the energy.** When they lean in or speed up, you've hit something. Probe deeper.
4. **No leading questions.** Not "Was it frustrating?" but "How did that go?" Let them name the emotion.
5. **Get the story, not the opinion.** "What happened?" beats "What do you think about...?" every time.
6. **30-45 minutes is the sweet spot.** Under 20 = too shallow. Over 60 = diminishing returns.
7. **The first answer is never the real answer.** Ask "why?" at least 3 times. The good stuff is 2-3 layers deep.

Human Review

Present the generated script for review using AskUserQuestion:

Interview Script Generated

Target: {interviewee context} Sections: 6 (Opening → Old Way → Timeline → Forces → Reflect → Wrap-up) Estimated duration: 30-45 minutes Customizations applied: {list customizations, e.g., "Extra habit probes based on evidence gaps", "Churn-focused framing"}

Options:

• A) Looks good, save it
• B) I want to edit something (tell me what to change)
• C) Start over

If the user chooses B, make the requested changes and re-present.

Write and Commit

1. Write the markdown file to .jtbd/interviews/interview-script-{context-slug}-{YYYYMMDD}.md using the Write tool.

The context-slug should describe the interview target:

• If a specific person: {first-name}-{role-slug} (e.g., sarah-ops-manager)
• If a persona: {persona-slug} (e.g., churned-enterprise-user)
• If general: general

Create the .jtbd/interviews/ directory if it doesn't exist.

2. If GIT is yes and the manifest has auto_commit: true:

git add .jtbd/interviews/{filename}.md
git commit -m "jtbd: add interview script for {context description}"

If the commit fails, write the file but skip the commit. Tell the user: "File written to .jtbd/interviews/{filename}.md but not committed. Run git add and git commit manually."

3. If GIT is no: write the file only.

4. Tell the user what was created and where:

"Interview script saved to .jtbd/interviews/{filename}.md"

Next steps:

• Print it or open it on your phone during the interview
• Record the interview (Fireflies, Otter, or voice memo)
• After the interview, run /jtbd-switch with the transcript
• After 3+ switch analyses, run /jtbd-patterns to find cross-interview patterns