> “Become a detective rather than creative genius.“ – Dane Maxwell I learned this from [Dane Maxwell](https://danemaxwell.com/) at The Foundation in 2013. [[300 In-Depth Interviews Challenge|To “become a detective”, I spent the last 2 years full-time interviewing more than 300 people.]] It was a humbling experience yet I believe it is the single most effective way to make business: **LEARN TO LISTEN – and I mean *REALLY LISTEN* – to your customers. And CONTINUE TO LISTEN even if it IS NOT what you want to hear** 1. Practice and master the art of conducting open-ended, long-form an in-depth interviews 2. Practice and master the science of qualitative data analysis tradecraft **It is about them. Period.** Your only job is to detect *their* pains, appreciate *their* dreams, improve *their* hacked-together solutions and speak *their* language.