[trikonasana]

One thing I noticed is how little the interviewer spoke, and when he did, how short his questions were. Vonnegut does the majority of the talking while the interviewer just keeps laying down graceful transitions for him to expand upon. I'm part of a startup that's doing customer discovery, and this seems like a brilliant lesson in interviewing.

[doomlaser]

There is a twist regarding the interviewer revealed at the very end

[krustyburger]

I appreciate you not spoiling the twist, but I wonder whether people will go back and read through the whole piece to find the interviewer’s identity. Maybe I’ll add the hint that this interviewer is intimately, uncommonly familiar with Vonnegut’s worldview.

[wombatmobile]

Customer discovery?

[sarora27]

The process of uncovering a problem that is shared across a group of prospective customers. Usually done when you're trying to figure out if a product idea has any legs

[wombatmobile]

I see. How do you make contact with these prospective customers and sit them down for long enough to chat, without them freaking out?

[sarora27]

Usually make contact via email or Linkedin. Show your cards up front and make it clear that you're not selling anything, just looking to learn more about a specific problem you think they have. Set expectations that convo will be brief (<20 minutes).

If someone has a real problem, they will be actively looking for solutions and would be happy to chat with you.