Want better solutions? Start by spotting better problems

Hey friends 👋

Lately, I’ve been thinking about the problems that don’t make it onto roadmaps.

❌ They’re not loud.
❌ They’re not in the data.
❌ They’re not even what users complain about.

But they quietly shape the entire product experience, creating friction, confusion, and those moments where people just… give up.

This week, I’ve been trying to get better at spotting those invisible issues.
Not by digging into dashboards, but by paying attention to what feels off.

Here are a few tips that are helping me notice the right problems sooner 👇

1. 👀 Some problems don’t show up in dashboards

And yet, they shape everything.

They’re the moments where people hesitate.
Where they skip steps.
Where they invent clever workarounds just to get through.

I’m learning to spot those not by asking “what’s broken?”—but by asking:
Where are people quietly struggling?

→ Try this: Sit in on a live session or playback. Watch where people pause, reread, or backtrack. That’s where the gold is.

🔗 Related read: Best way to create a friction log - Userpilot
📄 Template: Friction spotting worksheet

2. 🧠 Good product work starts before the backlog

Before there’s a brief or a build plan, there’s usually a small moment of:
“Hmm. That’s weird.”

Those moments matter. I’ve started capturing them more intentionally.

Here’s what’s helping:

🔎 Zoom out before you zoom in
Ask: What kind of problem is this? User behavior? Business gap? Workflow friction?

📝 Keep a ‘Hmm List’
I use a simple Google Sheet to track odd user quotes, drops, or odd Slack threads. No pressure to fix. Just observe.

📞 Talk to someone outside the room
Fresh eyes = fresh questions. And those often cut to the heart of things.

📄 Template: ‘Hmm List’ template (Google Sheet) 

3. 🛑 Pause before you build

It’s so easy to dive into delivery, especially when shipping feels like progress.

But I’ve been asking more often:
Are we solving the right thing?

Here are a few checks I use with my team:

✅ Ask: What’s the real user struggle?
✅ Gut-check: How do we know this exists?
✅ Zoom out: What happens if we don’t solve it?

If the answers are fuzzy, the problem might be too.

→ Try this: Pick one roadmap item and ask:
“If we shipped this today, what problem would it actually solve?”
If your team can’t answer clearly, it’s time to reframe.

🔗 Related read: Strong Product Sense Isn’t Magic - @gobiraj.bsky.social‬
📄 Template: Roadmap gut-check

That’s all for this week 👀

If you’re sitting on a few “hmm…” moments or low-key product weirdness, don’t ignore them.
They might be your next best feature waiting to happen.

👉 Got a sneaky problem you’ve recently uncovered?
Hit reply! I’d love to hear how you spotted it.

Talk soon,
Stefanie