Give Requirements, Ask for Advice

You Don’t Have to Know Everything

Here’s a worry a lot of people have: “How can I describe what I want, when I don’t even know what’s possible?”

Good news: you don’t do this alone. Claude isn’t just a builder. It’s also a very patient expert you can ask anything.

So the method is simple:

1. Say what you want, in your own words. Messy is fine.
2. Ask for advice as you go, whenever you’re unsure.
3. Let Claude interview you until nothing is fuzzy.
4. Write it all down in a file called REQUIREMENTS.md.

Step 1: Say What You Want

Start with whatever is in your head. Don’t worry about tech words or being complete.

I want a website to show my illustrations, kind of like a portfolio. I'd like it to feel playful. I have about 12 drawings.

That’s a perfect start. It’s honest, it’s specific where you can be, and it leaves room for the rest.

Step 2: Ask for Advice as You Go

Whenever you hit something you’re not sure about, ask. Claude will lay out the options, explain them simply, and tell you what it would pick.

Some of the most useful questions you can ask:

Treat Claude like a friendly expert consultant. You bring the what and the why. It brings the options and the know-how.

The question “What am I not thinking about?” is secretly the most powerful one. It surfaces things beginners never think of, like how the site looks on phones, or what happens when someone shares your link.

Step 3: Let Claude Interview You

Here’s a trick that works beautifully. Instead of trying to think of everything yourself, ask Claude to interview you:

Before we build anything, interview me about this website. Ask me one question at a time, and wait for my answer before asking the next one. Keep going until you understand exactly what I want.

One question at a time is the important part. A wall of twenty questions at once is overwhelming, and you’ll give rushed answers. One at a time feels like a conversation.

Answer honestly, including “I don’t know, what do you suggest?”. That’s a perfectly good answer. It just turns into a piece of advice.

Step 4: Write It Down

When the interview feels complete, ask Claude to put everything in one place:

Great. Now write everything we agreed on into a file called REQUIREMENTS.md. Keep it short and clear.

Then read it. Carefully. This is the moment to catch anything Claude misunderstood.

If it’s not in REQUIREMENTS.md, it’s going to be a default.

Why a file, and not just the chat? Because chats get cleared (remember the whiteboard). The file stays in your folder forever, and you can point Claude at it any time with @REQUIREMENTS.md.

Do It in Plan Mode

One more tip. Before you start this whole conversation, press Shift+Tab until you’re in plan mode.

In plan mode, Claude can read, think and talk, but it can’t change your files. So it can’t get excited and start building halfway through the interview.

(You’ll see plan mode again in this part’s last note, where it really shines.)

I want to build my own personal website. Before building anything, interview me about it. Ask one question at a time and wait for my answer. Whenever I'm unsure, suggest options and tell me which you'd pick and why. Keep going until you understand exactly what I want.

Please write everything we agreed on into REQUIREMENTS.md.