FREESKILL v1.0UPDATED 2026-08

Working Backwards

Working Backwards starts with a specific customer, a supported problem, and a proposed future experience, then uses both FAQ sets to expose the hard questions before approval.

A future press release can create clarity or camouflage. When it starts from a feature, invents proof, or hides alternatives and risks, the narrative makes an idea sound approved before the decision exists.

This playbook answers five customer questions, separates evidence from assumptions, drafts the internal future narrative, and builds customer and stakeholder FAQs. It replaces fictional testimonials with a labeled proposed reaction and keeps every launch date or benefit visibly proposed.

The PR/FAQ is a pressure test before approval, not a public announcement after launch.

SIGNALS YOU NEED THIS

The idea says it is for everyone and cannot name a specific customer.

A future narrative contains an invented quote, endorsement, metric, or launch date.

The document avoids alternatives, smallest useful scope, risks, or stop conditions.

REPLACES

Feature-first proposals, fictional launch proof, and decision documents that hide the questions most likely to stop the idea.

PAIRS WITH

Voice of the Customer, Prioritization Formula, How to Plan New Product and Services, Changelog, and Business Writing.

0 of 4 steps complete

STEP 01Answer the five customer questions

Name the customer, problem or opportunity, most important benefit, evidence of need, and proposed experience. Separate supported claims, assumptions, disputes, and missing evidence.

CUSTOMER
  Analyst who rebuilds the same reconciliation filter each week.
PROBLEM
  Repeated setup across the same export task.
EVIDENCE
  Four interviews, limited evidence.
BENEFIT
  Saved time is proposed and unmeasured.
EXPERIENCE
  Save and reopen a reconciliation view.

STEP 02Draft the internal future narrative

Lead with the customer and benefit, explain the experience before features, and write the headline last. Keep the document labeled as an internal planning draft.

STATUS
  Internal planning draft

PROPOSED FUTURE
  Analysts could save a reconciliation view and reopen the same filter setup for the next weekly export.

PROOF BOUNDARY
  No testimonial, endorsement, baseline, launch date, or approval supplied.

STEP 03Pressure-test with both FAQ sets

Answer customer questions about fit, use, limitations, support, and alternatives. Answer stakeholder questions about the decision, smallest useful scope, exclusions, dependencies, risks, measures, and stop conditions.

STAKEHOLDER FAQ
  Decision: fund a small discovery phase by September 18.
  Open risk: permissions.
  Open experience: mobile access.
  Smallest useful scope: Evidence needed.
  Stop condition: Decision rule needed.

STEP 04Create the visual brief and readiness verdict

Choose a low-fidelity format for the most important scenario and state what it must make clear. Then choose Decision-ready, Needs evidence, or Needs customer reframe without approving the idea.

VISUAL BRIEF
  Scenario: save a filter and reopen it next week
  Format: low-fidelity flow
  Must show: save, find, reopen, and permission boundary

VERDICT
  Needs evidence: time baseline and permission model remain open.

Download the folder into your agent's skills directory. It uses only the material you provide and makes no remote calls.

skills/working-backwards

working-backwards/
├── SKILL.md                         ← draft and audit modes
├── meta.yaml                        ← version, sources, test prompts, changelog
├── LICENSE.md                       ← MIT
├── assets/
│   ├── pr-faq-template.md           ← future narrative and both FAQ sets
│   └── pr-faq-audit-scorecard.md    ← evidence and readiness audit
└── references/
    ├── question-bank.md             ← customer and stakeholder questions
    └── visuals-guide.md             ← low-fidelity visual selection

INVOKE IT LIKE THIS

"Write the PR/FAQ for this idea."

Download skill v1.0 View source files

WORKS WITHClaude Code