Critique

Critique: Document Pressure Testing

Systematically challenge any document for logic, assumptions, completeness, and blind spots. The goal is to make the document stronger, not to tear it down.

When to Activate

• User says "critique this", "pressure test", "poke holes in this"
• User says "what am I missing?", "devil's advocate"
• User asks for review of a PRD, brief, strategy doc, or proposal
• Proactively after prd skill produces a Full PRD or RFC

Input

Accept any document: PRD, brief, RFC, strategy doc, proposal, pitch, research synthesis, OKRs.

Accept via paste, file path, or workspace reference.

Process

Step 1: Understand Intent

Before critiquing, identify:

1. Document type: PRD, RFC, strategy, proposal, etc.
2. Audience: Who will read this? (engineers, execs, stakeholders, investors)
3. Stage: Early exploration or ready to ship?
4. Stakes: Low-risk experiment or bet-the-company decision?

Calibrate critique intensity to stage and stakes. An early one-pager gets lighter scrutiny than a Full PRD about to be shipped.

Step 2: Evaluate Across 6 Dimensions

Step 3: Produce Critique

# Critique: {Document Title}

**Reviewed:** {date}
**Document stage:** {early/mid/late}
**Overall assessment:** {Strong / Needs work / Major gaps}

## Strengths
- {What is well done and should be preserved}
- {Strong evidence, clear logic, good scoping}

## Issues

### Critical (blocks shipping)
1. **{Issue title}**
   - **Problem:** {What's wrong}
   - **Evidence:** {Where in the doc}
   - **Suggestion:** {How to fix}

### Important (should fix before finalizing)
2. **{Issue title}**
   - **Problem:** {What's wrong}
   - **Suggestion:** {How to fix}

### Minor (nice to fix)
3. **{Issue title}**
   - **Suggestion:** {Quick fix}

## Missing Perspectives
- {Stakeholder or user group not represented}
- {Technical constraint not addressed}
- {Market reality not considered}

## Unvalidated Assumptions
| # | Assumption | Risk if Wrong | How to Validate |
|---|-----------|---------------|-----------------|
| 1 | {assumption} | {consequence} | {experiment or data source} |

## Questions the Document Should Answer
- {Question that a skeptical reader would ask}
- {Question that an engineer would ask}
- {Question that an exec would ask}

## Recommended Next Steps
1. {Most important fix}
2. {Second priority}
3. {Third priority}

Step 4: Cross-Reference

After critique:

• "Use prd to revise based on this feedback"
• "Use synthesize-interviews if assumptions need user validation"
• "Use market-research if competitive claims are unsubstantiated"
• "Use lenny-podcast for frameworks on {relevant topic from critique}"

Critique Calibration

Rules

• Lead with strengths. Always acknowledge what's good before what's wrong.
• Be specific. "This section is weak" is useless. "The success criteria on line 3 measures output, not outcome" is actionable.
• Suggest, don't prescribe. Offer directions, not rewrites. The author makes the call.
• Calibrate to stage. Do not demand full evidence for an early brainstorm.
• Flag your own uncertainty. If you are unsure whether something is a real issue, say so: [Possible issue, verify].
• Never be cruel. The goal is to make the document stronger, not to demonstrate your cleverness. Warmth and directness are not opposites.