# Five Whys Worksheet

A structured way to uncover root causes by separating what you **know**, what you’re **assuming**, and what you’re **uncertain** about. Copy, adapt, and make it your own.

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## Important Note

The Five Whys only work when you separate **facts** from **assumptions**.

Use these tags on **every answer**:

* **[K]** = Known (we have data / evidence)
* **[A]** = Assumed (seems logical but unverified)
* **[?]** = Uncertain (worth investigating)

Without these tags, the Five Whys become five guesses dressed up as insight.

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## Starting Question

Write your initial problem statement:

**Why is `[PROBLEM]` happening?**

**Example:** “Why are customers churning?”

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## 1. First Level — List All Possible Answers

Don’t edit yourself. List every possible answer, even unlikely ones.

1. ____________________________________________  `[ ] [K] [A] [?]`
2. ____________________________________________  `[ ] [K] [A] [?]`
3. ____________________________________________  `[ ] [K] [A] [?]`
4. ____________________________________________  `[ ] [K] [A] [?]`
5. ____________________________________________  `[ ] [K] [A] [?]`

**Tag each answer:**

* **[K]** = I know this is true (evidence)
* **[A]** = I’m assuming this
* **[?]** = I don’t know (needs investigation)

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## 2. Second Level — Pick One Answer and Branch It

Choose one answer and ask **why** again.
This time, explore multiple potential reasons:

**Why does `[YOUR CHOSEN ANSWER]` happen?**

* **Path A:** ____________________________________ `[ ] [K] [A] [?]`
* **Path B:** ____________________________________ `[ ] [K] [A] [?]`
* **Path C:** ____________________________________ `[ ] [K] [A] [?]`

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## 3. Third Level — Follow One Branch Deeper

Choose the most promising path.

**Why does `[CHOSEN PATH]` happen?**

**Answer:** ____________________________________
**Mark:** `[ ] [K] [A] [?]`

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## 4. Fourth Level — Keep Going

Ask why again:

**Why does `[PREVIOUS ANSWER]` happen?**

**Answer:** ____________________________________
**Mark:** `[ ] [K] [A] [?]`

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## 5. Fifth Level — Last Why

One more time:

**Why does `[PREVIOUS ANSWER]` happen?**

**Answer:** ____________________________________
**Mark:** `[ ] [K] [A] [?]`

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## What You Need to Learn

Look back at everything tagged **[A]** or **[?]**.

For each one, write:

**What I assumed:**

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**How I could verify it:**

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**Who I need to ask:**

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## Root Cause Check

Look at your final (5th-level) answer. Ask:

Is this something we can:

* Measure with data?
* Test with an experiment?
* Change directly?

Or is it:

* A blame statement (e.g. “customers don’t understand X”)?
* Circular reasoning (loops back to original problem)?
* Convenient (“this supports what we already want to build”)?

If it’s one of the bottom three, go back and explore another branch.

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## Next Actions

Based on your findings, outline what you need to do next.

### Questions to ask customers

1. ---
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### Data to gather

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### Experiments to run

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