Job
This tool should help me: ____________________.
If the job is “make things easier,” stop and make it specific.
2-minute tool triage template
Decide if a tool earns a real test before wasting the afternoon.
Most tool tests fail before the tool is even the problem. The job is vague, the input is messy, the output is not usable, or the failure mode is too expensive. This quick template filters those out before a full scorecard.
This page is useful without affiliate links. It is a workflow-first resource that supports the Tool Scout Lab warmup post 014.
Copyable worksheet
The six-line triage.
Use this before filming a demo, recommending a tool, or building a workflow around a shiny feature.
Input
The exact input I will give it: ____________________.
A vague prompt is not a product test. Name the file, prompt, page, clip, or workflow step.
Output
A usable result would look like: ____________________.
Define the pass before the demo starts.
Failure mode
The first thing that could break: ____________________.
Examples: hallucinated data, unusable export, bad captions, hidden setup time, weak mobile view.
Repeat value
If it works, I would repeat it: daily / weekly / only once.
One cool output is not the same as a useful system.
Decision
Next: full test / park / skip.
Only full-test tools should move to a scorecard, post, or monetized recommendation.
Disclosure
No monetized recommendation on this page.
This template is tool-neutral and useful without affiliate links. If outbound affiliate links are added later, the page should label them before the link and keep this worksheet available without requiring a purchase.