| The Reason Your Job Description Isn’t Working
Most early-stage founders write job descriptions the same way corporates do:
- paragraph about the mission
- tasks
- responsibilities
- tech stack
It feels normal. But senior engineers will read it and think:
“What am I actually owning here?”
If your role is unclear, so will your outreach.
And unclear outreach gets ignored.
👉 [Check out post #1 re why outreach gets ignored]
| Elite Candidates Don’t Respond to Tasks. They Respond to Missions
Tasks feel operational.
Missions feel meaningful.
Tasks say:
build X
integrate Y
maintain Z
A mission says:
“Ship the first customer-ready version of our product in 90 days.”
One line.
High clarity.
Instant signal.
Strong candidates don’t join to do tasks.
They join to own outcomes.
| Why Tasks Create Confusion, Not Clarity
Tasks tell an engineer what you think you need.
A mission tells them why the work matters right now.
Tasks force engineers to guess:
what’s actually important
what success looks like
what the business needs first
whether you’ve thought the role through
A 90-day mission removes ambiguity.
It shows you understand the business need and the engineering need.
Important:
A 90-Day Mission does not replace your job description.
It comes before it.
A JD written after the mission becomes focused and credible.
A JD written before the mission is almost always vague.
This is the sequence most founders get wrong.
| What a 90-Day Mission Actually Looks Like
A clear 90-day mission only requires three lines:
This is the level of clarity senior candidates expect.
| Create Your Own 90-Day Mission in <10 minutes
Ask yourself:
What is the one outcome this engineer must deliver in the next 90 days?
Why does it matter right now?
What constraint are they operating within?
Write three short lines.
If it takes more than 10 minutes, the role isn’t ready.
This mission becomes the foundation for everything that follows:
Your JD, your outreach, your interview loop, your decision-making.
🔗 Download the 90-day mission canvas (Google Doc)
A simple Google Doc you can copy and use immediately:
| What Happens When You Use a Mission Instead of a JD
Everything sharpens up:
your JD becomes focused
your outreach becomes high-signal
engineers reply more often
interviews become easier
expectations become aligned
hiring becomes predictable instead of chaotic
A job description explains the role.
A 90-day mission defines it.
Great hiring starts with the mission.
This is part 2 of the 4-part “Clarity-First Hiring Series”
Next week: “The founder interview loop that actually works”
Cheers
Neil