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The core framing
- A grilling session exists to answer questions about things you don't yet know about what you're building (
1:28). - Questions differ in the fidelity required to answer them — vocabulary borrowed from Ryan Singer's Shape Up (
1:28).
| High fidelity | Low fidelity | |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Needs a zoomed-in, detailed image to understand (1:28) | Answerable without a prototype or detailed image (1:55) |
| Examples | How will this UI feel to use? · Split the form fields across multiple pages, or one enormous form? (1:55) | What URL should this route live on? (2:21) |
| How to answer | A high-fidelity prototype, or actually building the thing (1:55) | Just answer it in conversation (2:21) |
| Term | Ungrillable | Grillable |
Failure mode #1
- Trying to answer high-fidelity questions during a grilling session (
2:21). - Questions about feel cannot be resolved by talking — you need to see the thing (
2:49).
The fix: a prototyping handoff
The author's routine when a grilling session hits an ungrillable question (2:49, 3:22):
flowchart LR
A["Grill with Docs session<br/>(grillable questions)"] -->|hits an ungrillable question<br/>use the handoff skill| B["Prototyping session<br/>see it in higher fidelity"]
B -->|hand off findings back| A
A --> C[Continue grilling / implement]