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The Job Behind the Ask

Sort real quotes, spot the feature request in disguise.

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The Job Behind the Ask

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Sort each quote into the job it really expresses. Watch the solution-in-disguise lane — that's where feature requests hide.

  • “I need to know the invoice went out before I leave for the day.”
  • “I don't want to look disorganised in front of the client.”
  • “Just give me a dark mode toggle in settings.”
  • “I feel anxious every month-end until the books reconcile.”
  • “I want to export everything to CSV with one click.”
  • “I have to get the team paid correctly and on time.”
  • “I want my boss to see I'm on top of the numbers.”
  • “Add a button that emails the report automatically.”
  • “I want to feel confident the forecast isn't going to embarrass me.”
  • “I need to split one PDF into per-client files.”
  • “I want to look like the person who has it together.”
  • “Make it work like Excel with formulas in cells.”
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The job behind the ask

Sort twelve real (paraphrased) customer quotes into the job each one is really expressing — functional, emotional, or social — plus a fourth lane for the quotes that are just feature requests wearing a Jobs-to-be-Done costume. Then the reveal names the exact tell you missed. Runs entirely in your browser (0 uploads, works offline).

How to use it

  1. Read each quote and pick the lane it belongs to.
  2. Watch the "solution in disguise" lane — that's where a fix masquerades as a need.
  3. Check your sort and read the X-ray — which disguised feature requests fooled you, and the tell that gives them away.

What this clears up (the fundamentals)

  • Jobs-to-be-Done — customers "hire" a product to make progress. The job has three dimensions: functional (the task), emotional (how they want to feel), and social (how they want to be seen).
  • A solution is not a job — "add a CSV button" is a fix someone imagined; the job behind it might be "get this data into my accountant's hands fast." Build for the job, not the ask.
  • Why the disguise matters — shipping the literal feature request scratches one itch and misses the real need. Naming the job reveals better solutions you'd never have been asked for.
  • The tell — a job is a goal ("get paid on time"); a solution names a mechanism ("make it work like Excel"). Learn to hear the difference.

Where it's used

A Product discovery drill for reading customer feedback and interview notes without taking every request literally. It's a miatz build-lab concept playable; learn to build it yourself.

FAQ

What is Jobs-to-be-Done (JTBD)?

A framework that says people don't buy products, they hire them to make progress on a "job." Every job has functional, emotional, and social dimensions. Sorting feedback by job (not by feature) is how you find what customers actually need.

Why shouldn't I just build what customers ask for?

Because the ask is often a solution they imagined, not the underlying need. Build the literal request and you may solve the wrong problem. Find the job behind it and you'll often ship something better than what was asked.

Is anything uploaded?

No. The quotes are bundled and the scoring runs entirely in your browser — nothing is transmitted or stored. Turn off your Wi-Fi and it still works.

How do I spot a "feature request in disguise"?

It names a specific mechanism ("a dark-mode toggle", "export to CSV", "work like Excel") instead of the goal or feeling behind it. The moment a quote prescribes the fix, it's a solution — dig for the job underneath.

Limits

A teaching deck of illustrative, paraphrased quotes — not your customers'. The point is to train the ear; run the same lens on your real feedback next.

Related

Part of the Demystify Playgrounds. Explore the rest from the Playgrounds home.

Bookmark this page (Ctrl+D, or ⌘D on Mac) — it works offline the next time you need it.

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