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Week / Day 2 · Thu Aug 6 / The interview masterclass
Studio · taught

The interview masterclass

Interview like a pro: the Mom Test, four questions, and a Claude practice dojo before any human.

Open this session's deck →
14:30
start
45m
duration
2
exercises
3
things you leave with
Welcome

Everyone lies to be nice, especially to you, and especially your friends. Today you learn the craft that separates real founders from wantrepreneurs: asking about the last time the problem actually happened, and listening to behaviour instead of opinions. You practice on an AI that plays a difficult customer before you ever touch a real one.

You walk out with
✓The four questions, internalized
✓Two scored practice reps
✓The reflex of following up on behaviour
Why this session exists

One honest interview is worth fifty polite compliments. The dojo means your first real interview is already your third rep.

The arc, minute by minute
14:30
The Mom Test: why would-you-use-this is poison
14:40
The four questions, built into your guide with Claude
14:50
The dojo: Claude plays a difficult customer, one scored round each
15:08
Debrief, then straight into the sprint: real people at 15:15
Exercises
01
The dojo
Claude role-plays an evasive, polite, slightly-lying customer. Run the interview. It scores you on every leading question.
02
Guide build
Four questions only. If your guide needs ten, you are pitching, not listening.
prompt · give this to the room verbatim
Role-play a customer for my problem interview. Be realistic: polite, a bit evasive, occasionally lying to be nice, like a real adult talking to a student. After the interview, score me: which of my questions were leading? Where did I pitch instead of listen? What did I fail to follow up on? Problem area: [X].
Tools in play
Claude as sparring partner
Materials to prep
Interview guides ×40A bell for rotations
The checkpoint · nothing counts unless it is live
Dojo score reviewed. Then it counts: 5+ real interviews before lunch.
The handoff · what the next session assumes
Leave withYour 4-question guide + a scored rep in each seat
DecidedYour target list of 5+ interviewees for the sprint
Bring nextThe guide on paper: no guide, no sprint
← previousDesign systems with AInext →Name it, mark it: names + logos