Pressure tests

What will you pressure test?

• For foundersFind the one assumption that sinks it.Turn over

  For founders

  The Board takes your business apart, finds the assumption that sinks it if it is wrong, and hands back the cheapest test that proves it.

  “Pressure test my business. Find the one assumption that, if it's wrong, sinks it within a year, tell me whether customers will pay for what makes it different, and give me the cheapest test that proves it before I spend another dollar.”

  Pressure test itPressure test your businessTurn back
• For foundersFind the crack before investors do.Turn over

  For founders

  The Board finds the claim an investor will push on and hands back a stronger deck.

  “Pressure test my pitch deck as the toughest investor in the room. Which claim breaks first, and what is the stronger version?”

  Pressure test itPressure test your pitch deckTurn back
• For CEOsTest the decision before the all-hands.Turn over

  For CEOs

  Strategy, reorg or a big hire, argued from every side before you commit.

  “Pressure test this decision before I announce it. Where does it break, who does it hurt, and what would make it stronger?”

  Pressure test itPressure test your decisionTurn back
• For entrepreneursWill anyone pay for this?Turn over

  For entrepreneurs

  Demand, price, and the cheapest way to prove it this week.

  “Pressure test my idea. Will people pay for it, at what price, and what is the cheapest way to prove it this week?”

  Pressure test itPressure test your ideaTurn back
• For authorsRead it like the toughest editor alive.Turn over

  For authors

  Plot holes, slow chapters, and the pages to cut.

  “Pressure test my manuscript like the toughest editor alive. Where does it drag, what doesn't hold together, and what should I cut?”

  Pressure test itPressure test your manuscriptTurn back
• For writersDoes the first page earn the second?Turn over

  For writers

  The opening, the voice, and where a reader stops.

  “Pressure test my opening. Does the first page earn the second, and where would a reader stop?”

  Pressure test itPressure test your opening pageTurn back
• For scientistsReview it before the reviewers do.Turn over

  For scientists

  Claims the data can't carry, and the experiment that settles it.

  “Pressure test my paper like a tough peer reviewer. Which claims go beyond the data, and what experiment would settle it?”

  Pressure test itPressure test your paperTurn back
• For studentsDefend it before the defense.Turn over

  For students

  The questions your committee will ask, answered first.

  “Pressure test my thesis. What will my committee ask, where is my argument weakest, and how do I strengthen it?”

  Pressure test itPressure test your thesisTurn back
• For actorsWalk in already knowing the room.Turn over

  For actors

  Your monologue choice and your read, as a casting room sees them.

  “Pressure test my audition piece. Is it the right choice for this role, and how will a casting room read it?”

  Pressure test itPressure test your audition pieceTurn back
• For directorsWill this scene play?Turn over

  For directors

  Script or treatment, argued scene by scene.

  “Pressure test my script. Which scenes play, which fall flat, and what would make them land?”

  Pressure test itPressure test your scriptTurn back
• For inventorsIs it new, and does it work?Turn over

  For inventors

  What already exists, where it breaks, the first prototype test.

  “Pressure test my invention. What already exists like it, where will it break, and what is the first prototype test?”

  Pressure test itPressure test your inventionTurn back
• For philosophersMake the other side's best case.Turn over

  For philosophers

  The strongest argument against yours, and whether yours survives it.

  “Pressure test my argument. Make the strongest case against it, then tell me whether mine survives.”

  Pressure test itPressure test your argumentTurn back