Chapter 7: Artifacts, Decision Gate & Conclusion
The Lean Vault, the PivotBuddy Decision Gate, and the bridge to Customer Discovery.
Your Lean Vault (Keep These Artifacts Safe)
You've done real work. Now save it somewhere you won't lose it.
The "Lean Vault" is just a folder—digital or physical—where you keep everything you've created. These aren't static documents. They'll evolve as you learn more. But you need a starting point to evolve from.
What Goes in Your Vault
Idea Capture
Your raw list of ideas from the brain dump. Tagged by source (personal pain, observed inefficiency, tech push).
Customer Persona
Your detailed profile of the target customer—their context, struggles, and the jobs they're trying to get done.
Problem Statement
Your precise articulation of the pain, with your Pain Score (F × S × D).
Value Hypothesis
Your "We help X achieve Y by Z" statement. How you create value differently.
Lean Canvas v0
Your one-page business model hypothesis. All nine boxes filled in (even if some are guesses).
Ranked Assumptions
Your RATs—the high-impact, high-uncertainty beliefs you need to test first.
Version Everything
Save these as v0, v1, v2, etc. When you look back in six months, you'll want to see how your thinking evolved. The path from "naive idea" to "validated business" is valuable learning.
The Decision Gate: Is This Worth Pursuing?
You've done the work. Now the honest question: Is this idea worth your time and energy?
Not every idea should be pursued. Some are fundamentally flawed. Some need more refinement. Some are ready to test. Here's how to tell which category you're in.
The Opportunity Scoring Checklist
Rate each factor honestly (1-10). Don't give yourself credit for things you hope are true.
| Factor | Question to Ask | Green Flag |
|---|---|---|
| Pain Severity | Is this a "hair on fire" problem? | Pain Score > 300 |
| Customer Accessibility | Can you name 10 specific people to talk to? | Yes, with contact info |
| Existing Workarounds | Are people hacking together solutions? | Active workarounds exist |
| Founder Advantage | Do you have unique insight or access? | Yes—domain expertise or network |
| Market Momentum | Is this market growing? | Clear upward trend |
Your Three Options
Proceed to Validation
If most factors are green: Your hypothesis is solid. You've identified clear RATs. Time to get out of the building and start talking to real customers.
Move to Playbook 02: Customer Discovery
Refine & Resubmit
If factors are mixed: The idea has merit but lacks clarity. Go back and tighten your persona, sharpen your problem statement, or find a better differentiation angle.
Loop back to earlier steps in this playbook
Discard & Iterate
If most factors are red: This idea is likely a "tar pit"—it looks promising but will trap you. Put it aside and explore other ideas from your capture list.
Return to Step 1 with a new idea
The Sunk Cost Trap
You've spent time on this idea. That feels like progress. But "time invested" is not a reason to continue.
The goal isn't to validate this idea. The goal is to find an idea worth building. If this one isn't it, finding that out now—before you've spent months coding—is a win, not a loss.
You've Completed Playbook 01
Take a moment to appreciate what you've done:
- You've transformed a vague idea into a structured hypothesis.
- You know exactly who your customer is and what job they're trying to get done.
- You've quantified the pain and understand whether it's worth solving.
- You have a clear value proposition and know how you're different.
- You've mapped your entire business model on one page.
- You know what assumptions could kill you—and which to test first.
This is more than most founders ever do. Most jump straight to building and wonder why it doesn't work.
You're not going to make that mistake.
What's Next: Customer Discovery
In Playbook 02, you'll take your hypothesis out of your head and into the real world. You'll talk to actual customers, test your assumptions, and find out if your beliefs match reality.
You'll step out of the building not with a sales pitch, but with questions. With a hypothesis to test. With a scorecard to track what you learn.
That's the advantage you've built by doing this work.
Score Your Opportunity
Ready to pass the Decision Gate? Use our AI tools to score your opportunity and prepare for customer discovery.
Playbook 01 Complete
Your artifacts are ready. Your assumptions are ranked. Your decision is made. Time to test your hypothesis in the real world.
Continue to Playbook 02: Customer DiscoverySave Your Progress
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Start Free TodayWorks Cited & Recommended Reading
Lean Startup & Validation
- 1. Features - Lean Startup Tools from Ideation to Investment. LeanPivot.ai
- 2. Ries, E. (2011). The Lean Startup: How Today's Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation. Crown Business
- 3. Maurya, A. (2012). Running Lean: Iterate from Plan A to a Plan That Works. O'Reilly Media
- 4. Blank, S. (2013). The Four Steps to the Epiphany. K&S Ranch
- 5. An introduction to assumptions mapping. Mural
Jobs-to-Be-Done Framework
- 6. Christensen, C.M. et al. (2016). Competing Against Luck: The Story of Innovation and Customer Choice. Harper Business
- 7. Ulwick, A. (2016). Jobs to Be Done: Theory to Practice. Idea Bite Press
- 8. Klement, A. (2018). When Coffee and Kale Compete: Become great at making products people will buy. NYC Press
- 9. Jobs-to-be-Done: A Framework for Customer Needs. Harvard Business Review
Problem Discovery & Validation
- 10. Torres, T. (2021). Continuous Discovery Habits. Product Talk LLC
- 11. Fitzpatrick, R. (2013). The Mom Test: How to talk to customers. Robfitz Ltd
- 12. What Opportunities May Lead to Someone Becoming an Entrepreneur. MBA Disrupted
Blue Ocean & Differentiation
- 13. Kim, W.C. & Mauborgne, R. (2015). Blue Ocean Strategy, Expanded Edition. Harvard Business Review Press
- 14. The Four Actions Framework (ERRC Grid). Blue Ocean Strategy
- 15. Strategy Canvas: A Visual Tool for Differentiation. Blue Ocean Strategy
Market Analysis & Signals
- 16. How to Validate Your Startup Idea. Y Combinator
- 17. Market Sizing for Startups: TAM, SAM, SOM. Forbes
- 18. Maholic, J. (2019). IT Strategy: Issues and Practices. Scribd
Cognitive Biases & Decision Making
- 19. Kahneman, D. (2011). Thinking, Fast and Slow. Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Lean Canvas & Business Modeling
- 20. The Lean Canvas Explained. Lean Stack
- 21. Osterwalder, A. & Pigneur, Y. (2010). Business Model Generation. John Wiley & Sons
This playbook synthesizes research from lean startup methodology, Jobs-to-Be-Done theory, and behavioral economics. Some book links may be affiliate links.
