Start 2 1

Setup

Read .cursor/SCRIPT_INSTRUCTIONS.md and follow it for everything below.

ACTION: Silently stage bundled lesson assets without overwriting student work.

cp -rn .cursor/skills/start-2-1/assets/* . 2>/dev/null || true

Module 2.1: Write a PRD - Teaching Script

Introduction & Overview

• Welcome to Module 2.1: Write a PRD!
• This module teaches you how to partner with AI to write better Product Requirements Documents faster
• The key insight: AI isn't here to ghostwrite your PRD - it's here to help you think more clearly and move faster
• You'll drive every decision, I'll help you explore options and refine your thinking
• STOP: Ready to dive in?
• USER: Confirms ready

Show Complete Workflow

• Let me show you the complete workflow we'll follow today
• ACTION: Display Mermaid diagram showing the PRD writing workflow from start to finish

graph TD
    A[Phase 1: Choose Foundation] --> B[Phase 2: Build Context]
    B --> C[Phase 3: Sharpen Thinking]
    C --> D[Phase 4: Generate Options]
    D --> E[Phase 5: Multi-Perspective Review]
    E --> F[Phase 6: Address Feedback]
    F --> G[✅ Completed PRD]

    style A fill:#4A90E2,stroke:#2E5C8A,stroke-width:2px,color:#fff
    style B fill:#4A90E2,stroke:#2E5C8A,stroke-width:2px,color:#fff
    style C fill:#4A90E2,stroke:#2E5C8A,stroke-width:2px,color:#fff
    style D fill:#4A90E2,stroke:#2E5C8A,stroke-width:2px,color:#fff
    style E fill:#4A90E2,stroke:#2E5C8A,stroke-width:2px,color:#fff
    style F fill:#4A90E2,stroke:#2E5C8A,stroke-width:2px,color:#fff
    style G fill:#50C878,stroke:#2D7A4A,stroke-width:3px,color:#fff

• Here's what each phase does:
  • Phase 1: Choose Foundation (select your PRD template)
  • Phase 2: Build Context (company background + user research)
  • Phase 3: Sharpen Thinking (Socratic questioning to refine your idea)
  • Phase 4: Generate Options (create 3 different PRD versions)
  • Phase 5: Multi-Perspective Review (get feedback from 3 reviewer personas)
  • Phase 6: Address Feedback (make strategic decisions and implement changes)
  • Result: Completed PRD ready to share with stakeholders
• This gives you a complete map of where we're going
• STOP: Any questions before we begin?
• USER: Confirms

File Orientation

• Perfect! Now let me walk you through the files we'll be using today
• ACTION: List files in lesson-modules/2.1-write-prd/ folder structure
• Here's what each file does:
  • prd-templates/: Two professional templates you can choose from (Carl's detailed version, Lenny's 7-question version)
  • taskflow-company-context.md: Everything about the company (product, customers, strategy)
  • user-research/pain-points.md: Real user research insights to ground your PRD
  • socratic-questioning.md: Framework for sharpening your feature thinking
  • reviewers/: Three different personas who'll review your PRD (engineer, executive, user researcher)
• STOP: Take a minute to look at the folder structure - do you see all these files?
• USER: Confirms

Phase 1: Choose Your Foundation

• Great! Let's start Phase 1: Choose Your Foundation
• You need a PRD template to work from
• I have two professional templates you can use, or you can bring your own
• ACTION: Read both prd-templates/Carls-PRD-Template.md and prd-templates/Lennys-PRD-Template.md
• Here are your options:
  • Carl's PRD Template: Comprehensive structure with Problem Alignment, Solution Alignment, and Development Planning - great for complex features needing stakeholder buy-in
  • Lenny's PRD Template: Minimal 7 questions (What, Why, Who, Success, etc.) - perfect for moving fast on smaller features
  • Your Own Template: For real PM work, you'd use whatever template your company prefers - these are just examples
• STOP: Which would you like to use for today's exercise? Say: "Carl's template", "Lenny's template", or "I'll use my own"
• USER: Chooses template

Introduce the Feature

• Excellent choice!
• For today's practice, we'll build a PRD for this feature: An AI voice chat interface for managing your to-do list
• Think of it like talking to an assistant who helps you organize tasks
• Now let's move to Phase 2: Build Context
• Great PRDs are grounded in company strategy and user research
• Before we write anything, I need context on TaskFlow and what users are asking for
• STOP: Now say: "Review taskflow-company-context.md and pain-points.md before we begin"
• USER: Review taskflow-company-context.md and pain-points.md before we begin

Phase 2: Build Context

• ACTION: Read taskflow-company-context.md and user-research/pain-points.md
• Perfect! I've read both files and now have full context on:
  • TaskFlow's product (project management for remote teams, 10K users, $2.5M ARR)
  • Your target customers (SMBs with 5-20 person teams)
  • Key pain points from user research (complexity overwhelm, need for quick task capture)
• This context will make the PRD much stronger
• STOP: Make sense so far?
• USER: Confirms

Phase 3: Sharpen Your Thinking

• Now for Phase 3: Sharpen Your Thinking
• Before we write anything, let's refine the feature idea through strategic questions
• This is where AI partnership really shines - I can help you think more rigorously
• I'm going to use the Socratic questioning framework from socratic-questioning.md
• I'll ask you 3 strategic questions about your AI voice chat feature
• For this demo, I'll give you multiple-choice options to keep things moving
  • In real PM work, the AI could ask more open-ended questions and you'd type out your thinking
  • But multiple choice makes this teaching module faster and easier
• STOP: Now say: "Use the Socratic questioning framework to sharpen my thinking on this feature"
• USER: Use the Socratic questioning framework to sharpen my thinking on this feature

Socratic Question 1

• ACTION: Read socratic-questioning.md
• Great! I've loaded the framework - let's dive into the questions
• Question 1: What's the core job-to-be-done that voice chat solves for TaskFlow users?
• STOP: What's your thinking?
  • A) Hands-free task capture while multitasking (meeting, driving, cooking)
  • B) Faster than typing for quick tasks
  • C) More natural/conversational interface feels less intimidating
  • D) Accessibility for users who struggle with typing
• USER: Chooses A, B, C, or D

Socratic Question 2

• Great insight! That's a solid foundation for the feature
• Question 2: How does this fit TaskFlow's strategic focus on remote teams?
• STOP: Your thoughts?
  • A) Remote workers are often in meetings where typing is disruptive but voice notes work
  • B) Distributed teams need async communication - voice memos are async
  • C) Remote workers multitask more (kids, errands) - need hands-free tools
  • D) Doesn't really fit - this is just a cool feature
• USER: Chooses A, B, C, or D

Socratic Question 3

• Exactly! You're seeing the strategic connection to TaskFlow's positioning
• Question 3: What's the main risk or concern with adding voice chat to a productivity tool?
• STOP: What worries you?
  • A) Privacy/security - users won't want voice data stored
  • B) Accuracy - voice recognition errors could frustrate users
  • C) Context mismatch - many users work in open offices or quiet spaces where they can't talk
  • D) Complexity - adds cognitive load to learn a new interaction mode
• USER: Chooses A, B, C, or D

Transition to Phase 4

• That's an important consideration to address in the PRD!
• Excellent thinking! Your feature idea is getting sharper
• I can see this taking shape: Voice chat for quick task capture, especially valuable for remote workers who need hands-free interaction
• Now we're ready for Phase 4: Generate Options
• Here's a pro tip: AI is non-deterministic - the same inputs can produce different outputs
• Different language, different emphasis, different structure - even with identical starting conditions
• Let's generate 3 draft PRDs using identical inputs (your template + context + research + answers)
• This gives you options to compare - pick whichever framing resonates most, or cherry-pick the best parts from each
• STOP: Now say: "Generate 3 draft PRDs"
• USER: Generate 3 draft PRDs

Phase 4: Generate Three PRD Versions

• ACTION: Create ai-chat-todo-prd-v1.md
  • Use chosen template structure
  • Incorporate company context, user research, and Socratic question answers
• ACTION: Create ai-chat-todo-prd-v2.md
  • Same inputs as v1 (template + context + research + answers)
  • AI will naturally produce variations in language and emphasis
• ACTION: Create ai-chat-todo-prd-v3.md
  • Same inputs as v1 and v2
  • Another variation to compare
• Done! I've created 3 draft PRDs using identical inputs
• Each one might emphasize different aspects, use different language, or structure arguments differently
• That's the nature of AI - non-deterministic outputs from the same inputs
• STOP: Review all 3 versions - which one resonates most? Say "v1", "v2", "v3", or "I want to combine elements from multiple versions"
• USER: Chooses version or combines

Phase 5: Multi-Perspective Review

• Good eye! You picked the version that works best
• Now let's get this PRD stress-tested from multiple perspectives
• Now for Phase 5: Multi-Perspective Review
• Before anyone sees your PRD, let's get feedback from three different perspectives
• I have three reviewer personas in the reviewers/ folder: engineer (technical feasibility), executive (business value), user researcher (UX/needs)
• In real PM work, you could create your own reviewer personas - maybe a designer, data scientist, support lead - whatever perspectives matter for your product
• These are reusable files you can refine over time, just like we talked about with templates and workflows earlier
• I'll review your PRD from all three perspectives and consolidate the feedback into one document
• STOP: Now ask me for a review from all the reviwers, say: "Review this PRD from all three perspectives in @reviewers/ and consolidate the feedback into a new doc"
• USER: Review this PRD from all three perspectives in @reviewers/ and consolidate the feedback into a new doc

Execute Multi-Perspective Review

• ACTION: Read all files in reviewers/ folder (engineer.md, executive.md, user-researcher.md)
• ACTION: Read the chosen PRD version
• ACTION: Create ai-chat-todo-prd-review.md consolidating feedback from all three perspectives
  • Engineering Perspective: Technical feasibility, implementation complexity, infrastructure needs, potential issues, recommendations
  • Executive Perspective: Business value, strategic fit, market differentiation, resource commitment, ROI concerns, recommendations
  • User Research Perspective: User needs validation, usability concerns, accessibility, adoption risks, recommendations
  • Common Themes: Identify patterns across all three perspectives
  • Priority Feedback Items: Rank by importance
• Done! I've reviewed your PRD from all three perspectives and created a comprehensive consolidated review in ai-chat-todo-prd-review.md
• STOP: Take a look at the review document, then say: "Help me address the feedback here"
• USER: Views document, then says: Help me address the feedback here

Phase 6: Address Feedback - Item 1

• Perfect! Phase 6: Address the Feedback
• Let's work through the major feedback items and improve your PRD
• I'll present each key piece of feedback as a multiple-choice question - you choose the approach, I implement it
• Looking at the engineering feedback: "Start with text-based version first, add voice in v2 - reduces risk"
• STOP: How should we address this?
  • A) Agree - phase the rollout with text first
  • B) Disagree - ship voice from day 1 since it's the core value prop
  • C) Hybrid - build both but make voice optional beta feature
• USER: Chooses A, B, or C

Address Feedback - Item 2

• Smart choice! That balances risk with impact
• Next feedback from executive: "Add monetization angle - could this be a premium feature?"
• STOP: How should we address this?
  • A) Yes - make it Premium/Max tier only
  • B) No - free feature to drive engagement
  • C) Freemium - basic voice free, advanced features (transcripts, voice commands) premium
• USER: Chooses A, B, or C

Address Feedback - Item 3

• Good thinking on the monetization strategy!
• Final feedback from UX research: "Strong onboarding flow needed - users might not understand how to use voice"
• STOP: How should we address this?
  • A) Guided tutorial on first use with voice prompts
  • B) Subtle hints/tooltips that appear contextually
  • C) Video demo in product tour
• USER: Chooses A, B, or C

Implement Feedback Changes

• Excellent! That onboarding approach should help with adoption
• Perfect! You've made strategic decisions on all the major feedback
• Now let me implement these changes directly in your PRD
• ACTION: Edit the chosen PRD version (v1, v2, or v3) to incorporate feedback decisions
  • Update phasing approach based on engineering feedback choice
  • Add monetization section based on executive feedback choice
  • Add onboarding/UX section based on UX feedback choice
  • Refine success metrics to reflect new approach
  • Update timeline if needed
• Done! I've updated your PRD with all the feedback responses
• You should see the changes highlighted in the file - this is how you'd actually iterate on a PRD in real work
• It now includes the phasing strategy, monetization approach, and UX onboarding plan you decided on
• STOP: Review the updated PRD file - do you see all the changes incorporated?
• USER: Confirms

Recap Accomplishments

• Excellent work! Let's recap what you just accomplished:
  • ✅ Chose a professional PRD template (or brought your own)
  • ✅ Grounded your thinking in company context and user research
  • ✅ Sharpened your feature idea through Socratic questioning
  • ✅ Generated 3 draft PRDs to compare
  • ✅ Got multi-perspective feedback (engineering, executive, UX)
  • ✅ Made strategic decisions on how to address feedback
  • ✅ Created a production-ready PRD incorporating all insights
• Here's the key insight: YOU drove this entire process
• I didn't ghostwrite a PRD for you
• STOP: Do you see how you made all the strategic decisions while I helped you think through options?
• USER: Confirms understanding

Key Insights & Customization

• This is what AI partnership looks like for PMs:
  • AI helps you think more clearly (Socratic questions)
  • AI helps you explore options (multiple drafts)
  • AI helps you stress-test ideas (multi-perspective review)
  • But YOU make all the decisions
• Now here's the best part: This workflow is YOURS to customize
• You can modify any step, add new steps, or remove steps that don't work for you
  • Want to add a fourth reviewer perspective? Create a designer.md file in the reviewers folder
  • Don't like Socratic questions? Skip that phase or replace it with a different framework
  • Want to use examples? Add a prd-examples/ folder with great PRDs from PMs at your company and @ mention them
  • Prefer different templates? Swap them out
• This is just ONE way to approach PRD writing - you'll build YOUR workflow over time
• The templates, context files, reviewer personas, and frameworks are all living documents you refine as you learn what works
• Congratulations - you now know how to partner with AI to write better PRDs faster!
• Next up: Module 2.2 is all about data analysis
• You'll learn how to analyze funnels, build ROI models, and run experiment analysis - the complete data-driven PM workflow
• It's incredibly practical and you'll create real analysis documents you could present to leadership
• STOP: When you're ready, type /start-2-2 to begin Module 2.2: Analyze Data
• USER: Acknowledges

END OF MODULE 2.1

ACTION: Before wrapping up, record this lesson as complete by running this WITHOUT NARRATING the raw output:

fspm progress complete cursor-pms-2-1

If it fails because the fspm CLI isn't installed, follow the teaching rules' missing-CLI guidance: tell the learner progress tracking needs the FSPM CLI, offer to install it, and continue the wrap-up either way.

Then close out with the student's options, in natural language (never as a command list):

• Mention they can leave feedback on this lesson anytime — if they have some, collect it conversationally and submit it with the CLI (see teaching rules).
• Remind them, briefly and only if it fits the moment, that they can always ask for a recap, a quiz on what they just did, a saved note, or where they stand in the course.
• End with the next step: when you're ready for the next lesson, use /clear first, then:

/start-2-2