Stage 1 · Lesson 3 of 7
What you know that others do not
Many people will try any obvious idea. So ask yourself what makes you better placed than most. This is , sometimes called an unfair advantage.
It might be knowledge from a job or a family business. It might be access to a community full of possible customers, or a rare skill. It might simply be that you have the problem yourself.
Building something to is a strong start: you understand the problem and can judge the product as its first user. Being able to reach customers is often worth more than being good at code, because getting noticed is where most small products struggle.
Common trapassuming that because you have a problem, many others share it and will pay for a fix. The next stages exist to check that.
A question to check yourself, an AI practice session and 2 cheat sheet entries come with the full roadmap. Unlock
Resources for this stage
Start with
- CourseFreeStartup School
Y Combinator · Beginner
Free lessons on how good ideas come from real problems; watch the ideas and talking to users sections first
Keep handy
Also worth your time
The classic essay on noticing problems instead of inventing ideas
- Product Manager Roadmap (roadmap.sh)Go deeper
A map of the non-coding product skills you will need, from research to pricing and metrics