Frameworks for product ideas

I sat at my desk, staring at a blank screen, and thought: What have I done?

Sweat dripping down my face, white-knuckling the edge of the desk, I started to panic. How am I going to build a product in six weeks? I can't even pick an idea.

Okay, it wasn’t actually that dramatic 😂

But when I sat down on Tuesday morning to start coming up with ideas for my six-week challenge, I went blank.

So instead of blindly throwing darts at a dartboard, I took a step back. I figured it would be more useful to come up with a few frameworks for generating ideas. Sometimes it helps to think about how to think.

Here are the idea generation frameworks I'm working through right now:

1. Scratching my own itch

I’m thinking through problems I’ve personally experienced in the past few months - things that made me say “surely this should be easier.”

The upside here is I already understand the pain point well. I can shortcut user research and build something that solves a real, felt need. The risk, of course, is that I might be the only person who actually cares. Still, it's a solid starting point.

2. Thin ChatGPT wrappers

These are simple tools built on top of an LLM where the value comes from great UX, not the model itself. You’re not reinventing the AI, just packaging it better for a specific task.

ChatPRD is a good example: it helps PMs draft docs, but the magic is in the structure and flow. This category isn’t going to lead to a big startup. But, it’s perfect for this challenge - relatively fast to build, clear user value.

3. Prosumer tools

Prosumer = professional + consumer. These are tools built for individual professionals, often used in a work context, but bought out-of-pocket.

For this challenge, I want to build something someone would pay for themselves. No procurement process, no team budget approval. Just one person seeing value and pulling out their credit card.

4. Single use cases from big products

Big tools like Notion, Jira, and Salesforce serve many use cases. But inside them are small workflows that some users rely on — and wish worked better.
I’m looking for those micro-use cases. If I can extract and rebuild one with focus, it might be more useful on its own.

5. Growing trends

I’ve been using tools like Exploding Topics and GummySearch to surface growing trends across the web and Reddit. This feels like a good way to find product ideas that tap into emerging needs — where users are actively searching for solutions and willing to try something new.

6. AI voice tools

This is more of a theme than a framework, but I’m really interested in tools that use voice as the main interface. I’ve been using SuperWhisper for audio-to-text, and it’s sparked ideas for voice-first versions of everyday tools.

For this challenge, the use case would need to be small and focused — but the space feels wide open and fun to explore.

I might still pick something outside these categories, but having a few mental models makes the idea process less chaotic.

If you’ve got your own go-to frameworks for idea generation, send them my way.