Ask six questions:
- Who uses the result?
- What should it help them decide or do?
- What must be included?
- What constraints apply?
- Who approves it?
- What is the smallest reviewable version?
Turn missing answers into explicit requests rather than private guessing. When clarification is unavailable, state assumptions and produce a limited draft.
“Work on the task” is not a next step. Choose an artifact that makes ambiguity visible.
Turn uncertainty into a draft
Write: “For this first version, I assume the audience is X, the decision is Y, and the deadline covers Z.” Then create the cheapest artifact that can confirm or correct those assumptions.
Do not privately invent requirements for hours when a short question would resolve them. When access to the owner is limited, keep decisions reversible and record what remains uncertain.
Use how to break down a big task and starting with many unknowns next.