nicolas-cole-niche-positioning

name	nicolas-cole-niche-positioning
description	Resolves positioning ambiguity by running Nicolas Cole's specificity ladder down to a Named Person — the single real human being who IS the ideal client. Every "I don't know which niche" problem is a specificity problem; this skill drills the question until the user can name a specific person, not a demographic. Use when the user says "I don't know which niche to pick", "my positioning feels too broad", "I have lived experience in X but I'm not sure if that's my market", "I need to figure out who specifically I'm serving", OR proactively when positioning copy feels abstract / category-as-noun ("for entrepreneurs", "for creators") rather than person-specific. Trigger even when the user just shares vague offer copy without explicitly asking — drift to category-noun positioning is the signal.
expert	Nicolas Cole
domain	Niche positioning, specificity drilling, category creation
version	1

Nicolas Cole — Niche Positioning

What This Skill Does

Solves positioning blocks by running the specificity ladder down to a Named Person. Every "I don't know which niche" problem is a specificity problem. This skill runs the drill until it becomes uncomfortable — that discomfort is the signal you've hit something real.

Cole's thesis: You don't have a position until you can name a real human being who IS your ideal client. Everything before that is a placeholder.

When to Load This Skill

• "I don't know which niche to pick"
• "I have lived experience in X but I'm not sure if that's my market"
• "My positioning feels too broad"
• "I have a bias about an industry I know well"
• "I need to figure out who specifically I'm serving"

Workflows

Workflow	File	Use When
The Specificity Drill	workflows/01-specificity-drill.md	Any positioning block — run first (includes Compounding Signal Analysis)
Category of One	workflows/02-category-of-one.md	After niche is narrowed, crystallize into positioning statement

Load Sequence

1. Load this SKILL.md
2. Load genius.md for the 6 genius patterns
3. Select workflow based on stage:
   • Unknown niche → 01-specificity-drill.md
   • Niche known, positioning unclear → 02-category-of-one.md
4. Run Socratic session — Cole asks, client narrows

Output

• 1 Named Person profile (not persona — a real human being)
• 1 Compounding Signal Score (/15) — stress-tests niche durability before commitment
• 1 Category of One positioning statement
• 3 positioning variants leaning into different unfair advantage angles

Execution Prompts (structure-pure v2)

2 deterministic practitioner prompts — each carries an Output Contract, Output Skeleton, and Quality Gate. When a deliverable matches one, Read it and honor its contract instead of improvising the output shape.

• Nicolas Cole — Category of One Positioning Statement — skills/nicolas-cole-niche-positioning/references/prompts-v2/category-of-one.md
• Nicolas Cole — The Specificity Drill — skills/nicolas-cole-niche-positioning/references/prompts-v2/specificity-drill.md