Go/No-Go: 3 Questions

TL;DR: Three questions kill bad ideas fast: Can you find them? Will they pay? Can you build it this month?

Stop overthinking. Start answering.

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The 30-Minute Framework

Most startup ideas die slowly from analysis paralysis. This kills them fast if they deserve it.

The 3 Questions:

1. Can you find 10 of these people by Friday?
2. Will 3 of them pay $50+ this month?
3. Can you build a $50 solution in 4 weeks?

If any answer is "no" → kill the idea or fix the obvious problem.

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Question 1: Can you find 10 of these people by Friday?

What this tests: Market access Why it matters: Great product, wrong audience = death

Pass examples:

• "Freelance designers on Twitter who tweet about client problems"
• "SaaS founders in my YC batch who mentioned this exact pain"
• "E-commerce store owners in my industry Slack group"

Fail examples:

• "Small business owners" (too broad)
• "People who care about productivity" (too vague)
• "Future customers" (doesn't exist)

The Friday test: Spend 2 hours. Find 10 specific people. Get their contact info. If you can't, your market is theoretical.

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Question 2: Will 3 of them pay $50+ this month?

What this tests: Willingness to pay Why it matters: Love ≠ money. Money = validation.

How to test:

• Send a one-line pitch: "Would you pay $50 for [specific outcome]?"
• Create a simple landing page with "Buy Now" button
• Ask for pre-orders with 50% deposit

Pass criteria:

• 3+ people say yes and mean it (deposit or commitment)
• They ask "when can I get this?"
• They refer others without prompting

Common traps:

• "I would use this" ≠ "I would pay for this"
• Friends being polite ≠ real market validation
• "Sounds interesting" ≠ commitment

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Question 3: Can you build a $50 solution in 4 weeks?

What this tests: Technical feasibility vs. market timeline Why it matters: If it takes 6 months, someone else will do it in 6 weeks.

$50 solutions look like:

• Simple tool that saves 2+ hours/week
• Basic automation of manual process
• Access to hard-to-find information
• Connection between two parties

4-week solutions use:

• Existing APIs and tools
• No-code/low-code platforms
• Manual processes disguised as automation
• Landing page + Typeform + Zapier

Red flags:

• "We need to build everything from scratch"
• "This requires machine learning"
• "We need 10+ integrations to launch"

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Scoring Your Idea

3 YES answers → Build immediately You have market access, validated demand, and technical feasibility. Start this week.

2 YES answers → Fix the gap Identify the weak point and solve it before building:

• No audience access? Spend 2 weeks building relationships
• No payment validation? Create better offers or find different customers
• Can't build fast? Scope down or use different tools

1 YES answer → Pivot or kill Major structural problems. Either change the idea significantly or move on.

0 YES answers → Kill it This isn't an idea, it's a fantasy. Find a real problem.

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Real Examples

✅ PASS: Local delivery for restaurants

1. Can you find them? 15 restaurants in my neighborhood
2. Will they pay? 5 said yes to $99/month for delivery integration
3. Can you build it? Zapier + Typeform + Google Sheets + driver network

❌ FAIL: AI-powered social media platform

1. Can you find them? "Everyone who uses social media"
2. Will they pay? "It'll be ad-supported"
3. Can you build it? "We need 12 months and a team of 8"

🔶 MAYBE: Project management for designers

1. Can you find them? ✅ 25 designers in my network
2. Will they pay? ❌ "We already use Notion/Figma"
3. Can you build it? ✅ Airtable + custom interface

Fix: Change the offer from "project management" to "client approval workflow" and retest payment willingness.

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The Weekly Discipline

Monday: Pick one new idea Tuesday-Thursday: Run the 3 questions Friday: Go/No-go decision Weekend: If go, start building. If no-go, pick next idea.

Don't spend months validating. Spend days.

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FAQ

Q: What if I can't find people who will pay? A: Then you don't have a business idea, you have a hobby project. Kill it or reframe it.

Q: $50 seems arbitrary A: It's not about the amount, it's about willingness to exchange money for value. If they won't pay $50, they won't pay $500.

Q: What if I need more than 4 weeks? A: Break it into phases. What's the smallest version that someone would pay $50 for?

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Ready to test your idea?

We run these 3 questions on every project. If it passes, we build it in 5 days.

Quick Build ($750) • Full Sprint ($7,500)

Internal links:

• The One-Idea Rule
• Tiny MVPs That Convert
• TAM/SAM/SOM in 60 Minutes
• The Anti-Graveyard Roadmap