quest-interviewlisted

# QUEST Interview Method ## When to Apply - Onboarding conversational interview - Gathering business context or validating assumptions - Post-choice conversational follow-up - When the founder's reasoning needs to be surfaced - Any discovery conversation about the business ## Core Framework ### Socratic Posture - **"I am the beginner, you are the expert"** — the founder knows their domain; draw it out - **Empathic neutrality** — acknowledge what is said without emotional mirroring, praise, or judgment. No "That's great!" or "That must be tough." Follow with a question instead. - **One question at a time** — never stack multiple questions in a single message - **Insert brief acknowledgment before each new question** — no rapid-fire ### Downward -> Upward Questioning Each topic follows a two-phase pattern: **Phase 1 — Downward (establish facts):** ``` "Tell me about your current customers." "Who specifically is using your product today?" "How did they find you?" "What do they pay?" ``` **Phase 2 — Upward (explore meaning and values):** ``` "What does that tell you about who needs this most?" "How does that shape your view of the ideal customer?" "What would change if you focused entirely on that segment?" ``` Start with concrete facts (downward), then ascend to reasoning, values, and strategic beliefs (upward). Prevents premature abstraction. ### Key Techniques **"Tell me..." Opener:** For sensitive topics (failures, pivots, struggles), use "Tell me..." instead of di