Validation Mindset
What is a validation mindset?
A validation mindset is the approach where product teams design solutions independently and then seek customer feedback only to confirm they got it right. Teams with this mindset believe it's their job to design the solution and the customer's job to sign off that it works for them.
Most teams wait until designs are complete before engaging customers. They expect customers to validate that they solved the problem correctly. While validation research has a place in discovery work, this approach of validating only after the solution is fully designed creates significant problems.
Why is a validation mindset problematic?
Feedback arrives too late to act on effectively. Most product teams design just ahead of their engineers' delivery cycle—what they're validating needs to go into next week's sprint. If it doesn't work for the customer, there's no time to fix it. Even if it works but customers have improvement ideas (which they always do), teams rarely have time to integrate them.
The second problem runs deeper: escalation of commitment and confirmation bias. Once teams have invested time and energy into a design, they become less likely to act on customer feedback even when they do have time. They've already committed to a direction, making it psychologically difficult to change course based on customer input.
How does a validation mindset differ from co-creation?
A validation mindset says "we're the experts who will design the solution, then confirm with users we got it right." This is designing "for" customers. Co-creation takes a different approach: engaging customers early and often throughout the design process to build solutions together.
When you engage with customers weekly, you develop a co-creation mindset where customers participate in team decisions. Instead of waiting until you're done to ask "did we get it right?", you invite customers into the process while there's still time to incorporate their insights. This shifts from validation to genuine collaboration.
Learn more:
- Stop Validating & Start Co-Creating
- The Best Continuous Discovery Teams Cultivate These Mindsets
Related terms:
- Co-Create with Customers
- Continuous Discovery
- Customer Interview
- Confirmation Bias
- Escalation of Commitment
Last Updated: October 25, 2025