Definition: A Job is the progress that an individual is trying to make in a particular circumstance.
The Job-to-be-Done (The “Why”)
A person isn’t just trying to “write a business plan.” They are hiring your app to:”Help me transform my vague idea into a credible, structured plan so I can feel confident and know what to do next.”The user is struggling with uncertainty, inertia, and the intimidating “blank page” of starting a business. They are looking for momentum and clarity.
The Customer (The “Who”)
The specific customer for this job is the “Aspiring Pre-Founder.”This isn’t a seasoned entrepreneur or an MBA graduate. This person is:
- Idea-Rich, Time-Poor: They have a day job, classes, or other commitments. They can’t spend weeks on a business plan.
- Action-Oriented but Intimidated: They are smart and capable but don’t know the “language” of business. Formal terms like “go-to-market strategy” or “TAM/SAM/SOM” are paralyzing.
- Seeking Validation: They have a promising idea but need to see it “on paper” to believe in it themselves and to articulate it to others (a potential co-founder, spouse, or friend).
The “Better” (How Your App Wins)
Your application is solving the job better than the existing solutions by focusing on structured guidance and speed.Here’s how it compares to the competition:
| The Competition (What the Pre-Founder Hires Now) | Why It Fails the Job | How Your App is Better |
|---|---|---|
| Generic AI (ChatGPT, etc.) | The user still faces a blank page. The quality of the output depends entirely on their ability to ask the right questions—they need to be an expert prompt engineer and a business strategist. | Your app is a curated conversational flow. It acts as an expert interviewer, asking simple, non-jargon questions in the right order to extract the essential information. It removes the burden of knowing what to ask. |
| Traditional Business Plan Software | These tools are heavy, complex, and feel like doing taxes. They are built for creating bank-loan-ready documents, which is overkill and intimidating for this early validation stage. | Your app is designed for speed and clarity, not exhaustive detail. Its goal is to create a “Version 1.0” plan in 5 minutes that builds momentum, not a 50-page document that kills it. |
| The Blank Google Doc / Notion | This is the ultimate source of paralysis. It provides no structure and no guidance, causing most ideas to die before they even start. | Your app provides an immediate, interactive starting point. The user is creating and making progress from the very first click, which builds the confidence they need. |
| Doing Nothing | This is the most common competitor. The friction of the alternatives is so high that the user gives up and the idea fades away. | Your app has the lowest friction to validation. It turns a daunting task into a simple, guided, and even fun 5-minute exercise. |
Summary
Your app isn’t just selling a business plan. From a JTBD perspective, you are selling confidence and momentum to the aspiring founder.
- You solve the problem better by replacing the intimidating blank page with a simple, guided conversation.
- You solve it for a specific customer who is full of ideas but paralyzed by the formal, complex process of traditional business planning.
HOW CAN TOOL THINKER HELP PEOPLE (ASPIRING STARTUP FOUNDER) TO PROGRESS?
The product you hire will transform you
From a Jobs to Be Done (JTBD) perspective, we uncover startup founder struggles by focusing on the progress they seek, the forces holding them back, and the emotions driving behavior.
Here’s a breakdown of the main struggles an aspiring startup founder typically faces, structured around JTBD:
⚙️ Functional Struggles (What they are trying to get done)
| Job To Be Done | Struggle | Why it’s Hard |
|---|---|---|
| Find a viable business idea | Too many ideas, no clarity | Fear of wasting time or picking the wrong one |
| Validate the problem and market | Talking to customers feels awkward or slow | Unsure how to ask, interpret, or act on feedback |
| Build an MVP | Lack of technical skills or overthinking the product | Fear of launching something “too small” |
| Make the first sale | Uncertainty about pricing and sales tactics | Selling feels “pushy” without confidence |
| Find co-founders or team members | Don’t know where to look or how to vet them | Fear of trust issues, commitment mismatch |
| Understand the business model | Don’t know how it all fits together | Lack of business education or exposure |
| Raise seed funding | Not sure what investors want to hear | Fear of rejection, confusing financials |
❤️ Emotional Struggles (What they are feeling)
| Emotional Job | Struggle | Why it’s Hard |
|---|---|---|
| “I want to feel confident in my idea.” | Constant self-doubt | Every decision feels risky and irreversible |
| “I want to feel like I’m making progress.” | Feel stuck in research or perfectionism | No clear signal of success |
| “I want to feel like I belong in the startup world.” | Imposter syndrome | Comparing to successful founders or VCs |
| “I want to prove I’m not wasting my time.” | Pressure from family or friends | Lack of external validation (yet) |
| “I want to feel in control.” | Overwhelmed by unknowns | Wearing too many hats, no clear path |
🧲 Forces of Progress (based on JTBD push-pull model)
| Forces Driving Change | Forces Resisting Change |
|---|---|
| 🌟 Dream of freedom, impact, or wealth | 😟 Fear of failure or embarrassment |
| 🤯 Frustration with current job/life | 🧩 Uncertainty about what to do next |
| 🧠 Inspiration from other founders or startup content | 🪨 Lack of clear frameworks, mentors, or guidance |
Context: Context drive the value/progress. Steak at a restaurant vs Steak at a kids birthday party.
System: Requires a system of parts working together for the solution/product. Example, parts of a car. Product in most cases is only a part of the system.
Push and Pull: What do the customers dislike and prevent them from using your product/service
Competition: Competition is not only products of the same type, but all alternative.
🧭 JTBD Summary Statement
“When I’m tired of my 9–5 and bursting with ideas, I want to turn one into a business, so I can have freedom, purpose, and prove I can succeed — but I don’t know where to start, I’m scared of failing, and I need tools, guidance, and a little belief in myself.”
Tip: You should start with the struggle, not with any solution or product
JOBS
Here’s how the Jobs to Be Done (JTBD) framework applies to a startup founder in the early stages, from ideation to first few sales. The list is organized in order of priority, reflecting the most critical “jobs” the founder must accomplish at each stage:
1. Clarify the Problem to Solve
“Help me make sure this is a real problem worth solving.”
- Identify a meaningful problem worth solving
- Understand who experiences this problem
- Ensure the problem is painful enough for someone to pay to fix
🔧 Tools: Problem Interviews, Founder-Problem Fit Canvas, Problem/Solution Validation Survey
2. Identify the Right Customer
“Help me find the people who care most about this problem.”
- Narrow down to a specific customer segment
- Learn their context, behaviors, motivations
- Validate whether they already look for solutions
🔧 Tools: Customer Persona, Empathy Maps, JTBD Interviews
3. Understand the Jobs to Be Done
“Help me deeply understand what the customer is trying to accomplish.”
- What are they trying to achieve functionally, emotionally, and socially?
- What success looks like to them
- What struggles or anxieties they face along the way
🔧 Tools: JTBD Interview Scripts, JTBD Timeline Mapping
4. Validate the Demand for a Solution
“Help me figure out if people want a solution before I build it.”
- Test whether customers want a better way
- Validate interest through early signals (waitlist, signups, conversations)
- Gauge willingness to pay
🔧 Tools: Smoke Tests, Landing Page Experiments, Surveys
5. Design the Minimum Viable Product (MVP)
“Help me create just enough to solve the key job.”
- Build a low-cost, low-tech version that addresses the core job
- Remove unnecessary features
- Focus on solving the primary functional/emotional job
🔧 Tools: MVP Canvas, No-Code Tools, Design Thinking
6. Get Early Feedback (Pre-Sales)
“Help me get early reactions and proof points before I sell.”
- Share MVP with target users
- Observe their experience using it
- Ask: “What job did this help you get done?”
🔧 Tools: User Testing, Interviews, Usability Sessions
7. Make First Sales
“Help me convert early users into paying customers.”
- Craft messaging around the JTBD (not features)
- Position the product as the best way to get their job done
- Handle objections and validate price sensitivity
🔧 Tools: JTBD Messaging Framework, Sales Scripts, Offer Testing
8. Refine Product–Market Fit
“Help me improve based on what users actually use and value.”
- Understand which jobs are being done well
- Identify unmet jobs or new adjacent jobs
- Improve solution based on usage and customer feedback
🔧 Tools: Customer Success Calls, NPS + JTBD Feedback Loop, Feature Use Metrics
Summary Table: JTBD for Startup Founder (Early Stage)
| Priority | Job to Be Done | Goal | Tools |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Clarify the problem | Identify if it’s real & worth solving | Problem Interviews |
| 2 | Identify the right customer | Pinpoint who cares most | Personas, Empathy Maps |
| 3 | Understand JTBD | Know the true goal of the customer | JTBD Interviews |
| 4 | Validate demand | Confirm people want a solution | Landing Pages, Surveys |
| 5 | Build MVP | Solve the core job simply | MVP Canvas |
| 6 | Get early feedback | Test solution fit to job | User Testing |
| 7 | Make first sales | Prove value and willingness to pay | Messaging, Offers |
| 8 | Refine product-market fit | Improve based on actual usage | Feedback Loops |
Struggles
From a Jobs to Be Done (JTBD) perspective, we uncover startup founder struggles by focusing on the progress they seek, the forces holding them back, and the emotions driving behavior.
Here’s a breakdown of the main struggles an aspiring startup founder typically faces, structured around JTBD:
⚙️ Functional Struggles (What they are trying to get done)
| Job To Be Done | Struggle | Why it’s Hard |
|---|---|---|
| Find a viable business idea | Too many ideas, no clarity | Fear of wasting time or picking the wrong one |
| Validate the problem and market | Talking to customers feels awkward or slow | Unsure how to ask, interpret, or act on feedback |
| Build an MVP | Lack of technical skills or overthinking the product | Fear of launching something “too small” |
| Make the first sale | Uncertainty about pricing and sales tactics | Selling feels “pushy” without confidence |
| Find co-founders or team members | Don’t know where to look or how to vet them | Fear of trust issues, commitment mismatch |
| Understand the business model | Don’t know how it all fits together | Lack of business education or exposure |
| Raise seed funding | Not sure what investors want to hear | Fear of rejection, confusing financials |
❤️ Emotional Struggles (What they are feeling)
| Emotional Job | Struggle | Why it’s Hard |
|---|---|---|
| “I want to feel confident in my idea.” | Constant self-doubt | Every decision feels risky and irreversible |
| “I want to feel like I’m making progress.” | Feel stuck in research or perfectionism | No clear signal of success |
| “I want to feel like I belong in the startup world.” | Imposter syndrome | Comparing to successful founders or VCs |
| “I want to prove I’m not wasting my time.” | Pressure from family or friends | Lack of external validation (yet) |
| “I want to feel in control.” | Overwhelmed by unknowns | Wearing too many hats, no clear path |
🧲 Forces of Progress (based on JTBD push-pull model)
| Forces Driving Change | Forces Resisting Change |
|---|---|
| 🌟 Dream of freedom, impact, or wealth | 😟 Fear of failure or embarrassment |
| 🤯 Frustration with current job/life | 🧩 Uncertainty about what to do next |
| 🧠 Inspiration from other founders or startup content | 🪨 Lack of clear frameworks, mentors, or guidance |
🧭 JTBD Summary Statement
“When I’m tired of my 9–5 and bursting with ideas, I want to turn one into a business, so I can have freedom, purpose, and prove I can succeed — but I don’t know where to start, I’m scared of failing, and I need tools, guidance, and a little belief in myself.”
JTBD Questions
From a Jobs to Be Done (JTBD) perspective, we uncover startup founder struggles by focusing on the progress they seek, the forces holding them back, and the emotions driving behavior.
Here’s a breakdown of the main struggles an aspiring startup founder typically faces, structured around JTBD:
⚙️ Functional Struggles (What they are trying to get done)
| Job To Be Done | Struggle | Why it’s Hard |
|---|---|---|
| Find a viable business idea | Too many ideas, no clarity | Fear of wasting time or picking the wrong one |
| Validate the problem and market | Talking to customers feels awkward or slow | Unsure how to ask, interpret, or act on feedback |
| Build an MVP | Lack of technical skills or overthinking the product | Fear of launching something “too small” |
| Make the first sale | Uncertainty about pricing and sales tactics | Selling feels “pushy” without confidence |
| Find co-founders or team members | Don’t know where to look or how to vet them | Fear of trust issues, commitment mismatch |
| Understand the business model | Don’t know how it all fits together | Lack of business education or exposure |
| Raise seed funding | Not sure what investors want to hear | Fear of rejection, confusing financials |
❤️ Emotional Struggles (What they are feeling)
| Emotional Job | Struggle | Why it’s Hard |
|---|---|---|
| “I want to feel confident in my idea.” | Constant self-doubt | Every decision feels risky and irreversible |
| “I want to feel like I’m making progress.” | Feel stuck in research or perfectionism | No clear signal of success |
| “I want to feel like I belong in the startup world.” | Imposter syndrome | Comparing to successful founders or VCs |
| “I want to prove I’m not wasting my time.” | Pressure from family or friends | Lack of external validation (yet) |
| “I want to feel in control.” | Overwhelmed by unknowns | Wearing too many hats, no clear path |
🧲 Forces of Progress (based on JTBD push-pull model)
| Forces Driving Change | Forces Resisting Change |
|---|---|
| 🌟 Dream of freedom, impact, or wealth | 😟 Fear of failure or embarrassment |
| 🤯 Frustration with current job/life | 🧩 Uncertainty about what to do next |
| 🧠 Inspiration from other founders or startup content | 🪨 Lack of clear frameworks, mentors, or guidance |
🧭 JTBD Summary Statement
“When I’m tired of my 9–5 and bursting with ideas, I want to turn one into a business, so I can have freedom, purpose, and prove I can succeed — but I don’t know where to start, I’m scared of failing, and I need tools, guidance, and a little belief in myself.”
JTBD QUESTION EXAMPLES:
