Product walks in with ✨vibes✨ and not a plan, give them this
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flowchart TD
A([Product proposes a fancy feature]) --> B{Is the user problem clearly defined?}
B -- No --> B1[Ask: What exact user pain does this solve?<br/>Request user quotes, tickets, or data]
B1 --> Z[Defer: Problem not validated]
B -- Yes --> C{Is this problem frequent & painful?}
C -- No --> C1[Label as Nice-to-have or Delight]
C1 --> C2{Is delight a strategic priority right now?}
C2 -- No --> Z
C2 -- Yes --> D
C -- Yes --> D{Is the outcome measurable?}
D -- No --> D1[Ask: What metric changes after launch?<br/>Revenue, Retention, Speed, Support?]
D1 --> Z
D -- Yes --> E{Does it align with current business goals?}
E -- No --> E1[Ask: Why now?<br/>What gets deprioritized?]
E1 --> Z
E -- Yes --> F{Is there a simpler solution?}
F -- Yes --> F1[Propose cheaper / faster alternative]
F1 --> F2{Does the simpler solution achieve 80% of value?}
F2 -- Yes --> F3[Proceed with simpler solution]
F2 -- No --> G
F -- No --> G{Estimated engineering effort?}
G -->|Days| H
G -->|Weeks| I
G -->|Months| J
H[Low build cost] --> K
I[Medium build cost] --> K
J[High build cost] --> J1[Require exec-level justification]
J1 --> Z
K{What is the ongoing maintenance cost?}
K -->|Low| L
K -->|Medium| M
K -->|High| N
N --> N1[Explain permanent complexity tax]
N1 --> Z
L --> O
M --> O
O{Does this introduce new system complexity?}
O -->|New schemas| P
O -->|New states| P
O -->|New permissions| P
O -->|None| Q
P[Document complexity impact] --> P1{Is complexity justified by impact?}
P1 -- No --> Z
P1 -- Yes --> Q
Q{Does this break backward compatibility?}
Q -- Yes --> Q1[Plan versioning, migrations, deprecation]
Q1 --> R
Q -- No --> R{Is the change reversible?}
R -- No --> R1[High-risk irreversible change]
R1 --> R2[Require high confidence or exec sign-off]
R2 --> Z
R -- Yes --> S{Can this be shipped as an experiment or MVP?}
S -- Yes --> S1[Define MVP scope<br/>Feature flags, cohorts, fake doors]
S1 --> T
S -- No --> T{What must be deprioritized to build this?}
T --> T1[Force trade-off discussion]
T1 --> T2{Are stakeholders aligned on trade-offs?}
T2 -- No --> Z
T2 -- Yes --> U
U{Is success criteria clearly defined?}
U -- No --> U1[Define success & rollback metrics]
U1 --> Z
U -- Yes --> V{Do we have monitoring & rollback plan?}
V -- No --> V1[Add observability & kill switch]
V1 --> Z
V -- Yes --> W([Approve build with constraints])
Z([Do not build now<br/>Backlog / Revisit later])