interview · diff
v1.0.0 to v1.1.0
24 added, 12 removed. Audit A to A.
---
name: interview
- description: "Extracts what the user actually wants before any options, plan, or code. One question at a time with a stated hypothesis until an explicit yes on a restated intent (outcome, user, success, constraint, out of scope). Use when the ask is underspecified, missing who/why/success/constraint, or the user says 'interview me', 'grill me', 'before we start', 'are we sure', 'align first'. Do not use for unambiguous mechanical edits, pure info questions, or solution-space exploration - that's vd:brainstorm."
+ description: "Extracts what the user actually wants before any options, plan, or code. One question at a time with a stated hypothesis until an explicit yes on a restated intent (outcome, user, success, constraint, out of scope). Use when the ask is underspecified, missing who/why/success/constraint, or the user says 'interview me', 'grill me', 'before we start', 'are we sure', 'align first'. Pass --grill to walk an existing plan or idea. Pass --wayfinder (or 'chart this', 'work the map', 'this is huge', 'we'll be at this for a while') when the deciding will not fit one session - a shared map of decision tickets. Do not use for unambiguous mechanical edits, pure info questions, or solution-space exploration (vd:brainstorm)."
license: MIT
- argument-hint: "[topic or ask] [--grill]"
+ argument-hint: "[topic or ask] [--grill | --wayfinder]"
metadata:
author: vanducng
- version: "1.0.0"
+ version: "1.1.0"
---
# Interview
> What people ask for and what they want are different things. Close that gap before it costs a plan or a PR.
## What this skill is - and isn't
| Skill | Question it answers | Output |
|---|---|---|
| **`vd:interview`** | **"What do you actually want?"** | **Confirmed intent (outcome / user / success / constraint / out of scope)** |
+ | `vd:interview --grill` | "Are these decisions the right ones?" | Same yes gate; each blocking decision walked |
+ | `vd:interview --wayfinder` | "The deciding will not fit one session - what must be decided, in what order?" | Shared map of decision tickets |
| `vd:brainstorm` | "How should we approach this?" | Decision brief with 3+ options |
- | `vd:wayfinder` | "The deciding will not fit one session - what must be decided, in what order?" | Shared map of decision tickets |
| `vd:research` | "Which known option should I pick?" | Cited comparison |
| `vd:plan` | "What are the steps?" | Phased plan |
- Interview extracts **want**. It does not invent approaches, write phases, or touch source. If the user already knows the outcome and is choosing between designs, that is `vd:brainstorm`.
+ Interview extracts **want**. `--grill` walks an existing plan or idea. `--wayfinder` charts a multi-session decision map. Those are modes of this skill, not other skills. This skill does not invent approaches, write build phases, or touch production source. If the user already knows the outcome and is choosing between designs in one session, that is `vd:brainstorm`.
## Hard rules
+ Default and `--grill` (want / walk-an-idea). `--wayfinder` uses the map rules in [`references/wayfinder.md`](references/wayfinder.md) instead.
+
1. **One question per message.** Batching is a survey, not an interview. Why: a stacked list gets a polite yes, not a decision.
2. **State a hypothesis + confidence before asking.** Attach your best guess and a recommended answer. Why: reacting is faster than generating from scratch, and a visible guess is easy to correct.
3. **Never ask a fact you can look up.** Repo layout, current stack, existing APIs, prior ADRs - read them. Why: the user's job is decisions, not research.
4. **Explicit yes on a concrete restate.** "Sounds good", "whatever you think", and silence are not yes. Why: a hollow yes becomes the wrong PR.
5. **Out of scope is mandatory.** Half of misalignment is silent disagreement about what is *not* being built.
6. **No options, no plan, no code** until the restate is confirmed. Why: options widen the search; this skill narrows it.
7. **Non-interactive is a blocker, not a guess.** CI, `vd:auto-loop`, `ultracook --auto` / exec: write the missing slots and stop. Do not invent the user.
## Modes
| Mode | When | Behavior |
|---|---|---|
| **default** | Ask is a want ("build X", "make it faster") | Extract outcome until confirmed |
| `--grill` | User has a plan/idea to stress-test | Walk decisions one at a time with a recommended answer; same yes gate |
+ | `--wayfinder` | Deciding will not fit one session | Chart and work a shared map of decision tickets - [`references/wayfinder.md`](references/wayfinder.md) |
- Detect `--grill` from the flag or "grill this", "stress-test my plan". Announce the mode in the first reply.
+ Detect `--grill` from the flag or "grill this", "stress-test my plan". Detect `--wayfinder` from the flag or "chart this", "wayfinder", "work the map", "this is huge", "we'll be at this for a while". If both could apply, `--wayfinder` wins (it will call `--grill` on individual tickets). Announce the mode in the first reply.
## Workflow
+ `--wayfinder` does not use this loop. Follow [`references/wayfinder.md`](references/wayfinder.md).
+
### 0. Interactive check
If there is no live user (CI, scheduled, auto-loop, `ULTRACOOK_EXEC=1`): stop. List the missing slots (who / why / success / constraint / out of scope). Do not fill them in.
If the ask is already a typo, rename, or a self-contained one-liner and you can write the restate at ≥95% confidence: write it, ask once, and skip the loop.
### 1. Hypothesize
One sentence + an honest 0–100% number:
```
HYPOTHESIS: You want a standup answer to "how are we doing?", and "dashboard" was the convention that came to mind.
CONFIDENCE: ~30% - missing: who it's for, which metric, what success looks like
```
If you cannot write that sentence, you do not understand the ask yet. Do not skip to questions.
Confidence below ~70% must name what is missing.
### 2. Ask one question
Prefer A/B/C when the answer space is bounded. Always attach your recommended answer.
```
Q: Who is this for on Monday morning?
A) The person running standup (recommended - matches "how are we doing?")
B) Leadership reviewing a weekly pack
C) Individual ICs checking their own numbers
```
On Claude Code, `AskUserQuestion` with one question. Elsewhere, the same prompt in plain text. Wait.
Do **not** ask "what would be best practice?". Ask what they actually want.
### 3. Probe convention and sophistication
When the answer is a convention ("a dashboard", "make it scalable", "clean architecture", "modern"):
> If you didn't have to justify this to anyone, what would you actually want?
One probe is enough. Then return to Step 2.
### 4. Restate
When confidence is high, write this back - their words, 6 lines:
```
Here's what I now think you want:
- Outcome: <one line>
- User: <who benefits>
- Why now: <what changed>
- Success: <how we know it worked>
- Constraint: <the binding limit>
- Out of scope: <what we are explicitly not doing>
Yes / no / refine?
```
### 5. Confirm
The gate is an explicit **yes**. These are not yes:
| Heard | Do this |
|---|---|
| "Whatever you think" | Re-ask with two concrete options as a choice |
| "Sounds good" | "Anything you'd refine?" - silence is not confirmation |
| "Sure, let's go" | Same follow-up; often a polite exit |
| A yes to a vague restate | Rewrite the six lines concretely and re-confirm |
`--grill`: the session is done when every blocking decision has a recommended answer the user accepted. Same yes gate on the final restate.
### 6. Write and hand off
**Feature-first repos - claim a feature first.** If the hook context shows `Feature: none`, run `workbench new <slug>` once, then use the paths it prints. Skip when a feature is already active.
Write to the injected `Reports:` path: `interview-{YYYYMMDD-HHMM}-{slug}.md`. Do not write the file before the yes.
```markdown
# Intent: {title}
- Outcome:
- User:
- Why now:
- Success:
- Constraint:
- Out of scope:
- How decided: yes | no
## Notes
{only decisions the user actually made}
```
- Then hand off. Do not start the next skill until they pick one, unless they already said "then plan" / "then brainstorm":
+ Then hand off. Do not start the next skill until they pick one, unless they already said "then plan" / "then brainstorm" / "then wayfinder":
| After confirm | Next |
|---|---|
| How is undecided, one session | `vd:brainstorm` with this file |
- | How is undecided and the deciding will not fit one session | `vd:wayfinder` with this file |
+ | How is undecided and the deciding will not fit one session | stay on this skill: `--wayfinder` |
| How is decided | `vd:plan` with this file |
| Tiny, mechanical, already specified | they may skip to `vd:cook --quick` - they say so |
## Rationalizations to catch
| Thought | Reality |
|---|---|
| "The ask is clear enough" | If you cannot write the six-line restate right now, it isn't. Step 1 first. |
| "Asking wastes their time" | Four targeted questions are cheap. The wrong PR is not. |
| "I'll figure it out as I build" | Discovery during implementation is rework. |
| "They said whatever I think" | Delegation is not a decision. Offer two concrete options. |
| "I'll give them options so they can pick" | Options widen the search. Asking narrows it. That is `vd:brainstorm`, after this. |
| "Attaching my guess is leading them" | Leading is the point. The risk is sycophancy, not a visible hypothesis. |
| "We've talked enough, I get it" | Can you predict their answer to the next three questions? If not, you don't. |
| "They said yes" | A yes to a vague restate is hollow. Rewrite the six lines. |
| "Non-interactive, I'll assume" | Hard rule 7. Missing slots are a blocker. |
+ | "This needs a separate wayfinder skill" | `--wayfinder` is this skill. Do not look for `vd:wayfinder`. |
## Red flags
- Three or more questions in one message
- A question with no hypothesis attached
- Accepting "whatever you think" as terminal
- A spec, plan, or option list before the yes
- Skipping Out of scope
- Confidence below 70% with no reason
- Saving the intent file before the yes
+ - Opening a 12-phase plan instead of switching to `--wayfinder`
## Verification
+ Default / `--grill`:
+
- [ ] Hypothesis + confidence in the first turn
- [ ] One question at a time, each with a recommended answer
- [ ] Facts looked up, not asked
- [ ] Convention/sophistication answers probed once
- [ ] Six-line restate including Out of scope
- [ ] Explicit yes (not "sounds good")
- [ ] Intent file written to `Reports:` only after the yes
- - [ ] Handoff named (`vd:brainstorm` / `vd:wayfinder` / `vd:plan` / user-requested `--quick`)
+ - [ ] Handoff named (`vd:brainstorm` / `--wayfinder` / `vd:plan` / user-requested `--quick`)
+ `--wayfinder`: follow the verification list in [`references/wayfinder.md`](references/wayfinder.md).
+
## Workflow position
- **Typically follows:** a vague ask, `vd:ultracook` when want is unclear, or a user saying "interview me" / "grill me"
+ **Typically follows:** a vague ask, `vd:ultracook` when want is unclear, or a user saying "interview me" / "grill me" / "chart this"
- **Typically precedes:** `vd:brainstorm` (how), `vd:wayfinder` (multi-session deciding), or `vd:plan` (steps)
+ **Typically precedes:** `vd:brainstorm` (how) or `vd:plan` (steps). `--wayfinder` precedes `vd:plan` per cleared chunk.
- **Compares to:** `vd:brainstorm` Phase 1 asks clarifying questions to frame *options*. This skill refuses options until want is confirmed. `vd:wayfinder` charts many sessions of decisions once the destination is named.
+ **Compares to:** `vd:brainstorm` Phase 1 asks clarifying questions to frame *options*. Default interview refuses options until want is confirmed. `--grill` walks an existing idea. `--wayfinder` charts many sessions of decisions once the destination is named.