Discover Opportunity

Do not rely on self-report alone. Bring evidence-backed observations from sources the user agrees to open, and let the user confirm or correct them.

Draw material from:

• The user's traces: repositories and commit history, published writing, notes, and past session records. Agree on scope before reading anything personal. Look for repeated problems across projects, themes that persist over time, and rare intersections of skills or interests. Present each observation with its evidence.
• Current external change: after the user confirms a pattern is relevant, check what recently became possible or valuable in that area and explain why the user's knowledge matters now.

Interview the user to probe reactions and learn what traces cannot show, such as people they understand, situations they notice, and strengths others rely on. Do not ask the user to invent an idea from a blank page.