I try to understand what someone needs a project’s result for before I begin. That purpose can shape the format and emphasis more than the initial request alone.
Before I start any project, I check what the person actually wants the result for, not just what they asked.
People skip this because it feels like it slows things down.
In one college project, I asked my teammate what the report was for and found out it was going to a client, not a professor, so I changed the format and focused on clear takeaways. I changed the format and focused on clear takeaways for a client rather than a professor.
It saved us a full rewrite.
I’ve learned the first question matters more than the first draft.