Me: Excellent. Can you tell me about your user needs?
X: Sure, we have our user stories and customer journey.
Me: This was written with your users?
X: No, we wrote it.
Me: Hmmm. Do you use your product?
X: Ourselves? No.
Me: Ah. That explains a lot.
X: Is there such a thing?
Me: I'm sure if you paid someone enough there would be.
X: That's not very helpful.
Me: Neither is pretending to understand user needs when you don't actually talk to any users.
Me: Ah, a random walk.
X: No, we have an opinion.
Me: Based on what? Your own staff don't even use your own product.
Me: Have you considered adding some AI, maybe a blockchain?
X: We're considering potential uses, yes.
Me: Good. In a world of meme driven development, a little bit of blockchain always helps.
Me: You mean you don't like anyone questioning what you're doing. You don't like the challenge.
X: That's not true, we believe in transparency.
Me: No you don't. I've been where you are. I've been that impostor CEO. It's ok once you realise ...
Me: No. I'll recommend you start by asking your users to help you. Try something radical like talking to them or using your own product. On the question of payment, who should I send the invoice to?