After a batch of conversations: With your team, review your notes and key customer quotes If relevant, transfer notes into permanent storage Update your beliefs and plans Decide on the next 3 big questions

The process before a batch of conversations: If you haven’t yet, choose a focused, findable segment With your team, decide your big 3 learning goals If relevant, decide on ideal next steps and commitments If conversations are the right tool, figure out who to talk to Create a series of best guesses about what the person cares about If a question

Warning signs that you’re just going through the motions: You’re talking more than they are They are complimenting you or your idea You told them about your idea and don’t have next steps You don’t have notes You haven’t looked through your notes with your team You got an unexpected answer and it didn’t change your idea You weren’t scared of any of

Specifics ☑ Feature request or purchasing criteria ＄ Money or budgets or purchasing process ♀ Mentioned a specific person or company ☆ Follow-up task

Their life ☇ Pain or problem (symbol is a lightning bolt) ⨅ Goal or job-to-be-done (symbol is a soccer/football goal) ☐ Obstacle ⤴ Workaround ^ Background or context (symbol is a distant mountain) These five “life” symbols are your bread and butter. Combine them with emotion symbols where appropriate. Pains and obstacles carry a lot more weight

Emotions :) Excited :( Angry :| Embarrassed

In either case, add symbols to your notes as context and shorthand.

When possible, write down exact quotes. Wrap them in quotation marks so you know it’s verbatim. You can later use them in your marketing language, fundraising decks, and to resolve arguments with skeptical teammates. Other times the details aren’t so relevant and you can just jot down the gist.

Meetings go best when you’ve got two people at them. One person can focus on taking notes and the other can focus on talking. As the second person, you may notice the lead asking bad questions or missing a signal they should be digging into. Just jump in and fix them.