* What are you trying to do? Articulate your objectives using absolutely no jargon.
* How is it done today, and what are the limits of current practice?
* What's new in your approach and why do you think it will be successful?
* Who cares? If you're successful, what difference will it make?
* What are the risks and the payoffs?
* How much will it cost? How long will it take?
* What are the midterm and final "exams" to check for success?

See also this interview in Business Week from 2005:

Successes usually don't teach you as much as failures. They just confirm that what you already knew was right.

Heilmeier's Catechism