Discovery = Opportunity
Let's use tension to find where we should be going
This week, I want to talk about something that gets misused in nearly every product team I’ve seen:
Discovery.
Most teams treat discovery like a flashlight: “We’ve picked a path. Let’s shine a light and see what’s ahead.”
But if you’re only using discovery to illuminate how to deliver something that’s already decided, you’re missing the entire point.
Discovery isn’t a flashlight.
It’s a radar.
A Moment That Changed Everything
When I joined a SaaS company a few years ago, research was siloed into delivery. A feature would be scoped, and thenwe’d ask how to build it.
There was no question of “Should we build this?”
No challenge to the vision.
Just vibes and shipping.
The result?
Misaligned bets
Wasted cycles
Strategy no one could explain
Burnout across the board
So I shifted the sequence.
Instead of discovery supporting delivery, it supported decision-making.
I began by asking: What do we need to learn to make this strategy real?
When we did that, the energy shifted. Suddenly:
Teams were aligned to purpose
Leadership had real options
Product became a partner, not a black hole
Discovery = Opportunity
Here’s the mindset shift I want you to try:
Discovery isn’t a phase. It’s a way of finding leverage.
When you start from your strategy, discovery becomes your tool to surface:
Untapped revenue streams
Customer problems worth solving
Misalignment across the org
Cost-saving shifts in direction
Internal friction that slows execution
It’s no longer a UX or PM function. It’s an org-wide advantage.
Your Radar: The 4 Types of Questions That Surface Opportunity
To use discovery this way, you need to ask better questions.
Start by scanning your strategy. Then ask:
1. Goal Gap Questions
What’s in the way of hitting our business outcomes?
“What assumptions are we making about this bet?”
“Where are we guessing?”
2. Customer Truth Questions
What don’t we understand about our users’ behavior?
“What pain are they solving without us right now?”
“What triggers actually lead to purchase or engagement?”
3. Org Alignment Questions
Where are internal priorities or incentives out of sync?
“Which teams are pulling in a different direction?”
“Who’s not at the table, but should be?”
4. System Leverage Questions
What would be true if this was easy?
“Where are we overengineering?”
“What part of this problem is already solved elsewhere?”
These aren’t “how will we build it?” questions.
They’re “should we build it—and why?” questions.
They create real discovery — the kind that leads to opportunity.
Why This Is Hard (and Why It’s Worth It)
This isn’t easy.
These questions expose tension. They make you confront ambiguity. They might challenge the confidence of your roadmap, your vision, or your role.
But on the other side?
Clarity.
Instead of assuming buy-in, you’ll create it—through dialogue, through evidence, through strategic iteration.
Because every time you surface a new opportunity and ask, “Is this where we want to go?”
You’re forcing the kind of leadership conversation that most orgs avoid until it’s too late.
So here’s my challenge:
This Week’s Exercise
1. Pick one strategic goal you’re supposed to hit this quarter.
Make it specific.
2. Ask yourself: What do I not know that could derail this?
Then use the 4 question types above to surface discovery targets.
3. Bring those questions to your team.
Not to defend. Not to sell. Just to listen.
Start small.
Do it once this week.
Again next week.
Build the muscle.
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This work may feel uncomfortable.
But doing discovery this way turns ambiguity into direction.
It turns chaos into alignment.
It turns strategy into something you can actually act on.
And once you get a taste of that?
You won’t go back.
I’d love to hear from you:
🧠 What’s the best question you've asked recently that changed your roadmap?
Hit reply or drop a comment.
Let’s make discovery count.
— Adam