Urgency & Market Size: Validate Pain and Reach Without Fancy Research

Pain first, then people.
If I can’t name real workarounds and a reachable segment, I don’t build. Here’s the quick way I validate both without surveys or months of “research.”

Urgency checklist

• List 3 current workarounds. If “do nothing” dominates, urgency is weak.
• Quantify pain: hours lost, failed SLAs, real money at risk.
• Look for paid hacks (consultants, overtime, duct‑taped tools). That’s heat.

Market size checklist

• Define a reachable segment (SAM), not “everyone.”
• Write: “I can reach X people who do Y via Z.” Replace X/Y/Z with real numbers/channels.
• Quick TAM→SAM→SOM sketch: top‑down sanity + bottom‑up channel math.

Decision rule: If you can’t name a workaround and a channel to reach 1k prospects, park and refine.

Deep dive + template → https://shipwithai.substack.com/p/10-ways-to-evaluate-your-ideas-potentialeven?utm_source=devto&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=issue_idea_eval_10ways