Inspired by Mike Markkula Photo by Robert Anasch on Unsplash The iPhone is as much art as it is technology. Even the packaging is a joy to use. How did Apple learn to value aesthetics? We are told it was the maniacal focus of the late Steve Jobs, and it…

Inspired by Taiichi Ohno — Photo by Stephen Dawson on Unsplash Every business teeters on oblivion. Survival is not assured by virtue of incorporation. Early in an organization’s life, this instability permeates everything — uncertainty is the norm. As a venture grows, presumably finding a better fit with the market and adding more people to…

Inspired by Paul Graham Photo by Oliver Schwendener on Unsplash Innovation will always be fought. It a cliche, but it’s also true; if you don’t have haters you’re likely not doing much interesting. “If you discover something new, there’s a significant chance you’ll be accused of some form of heresy.”…

Photo by Steve Johnson on Unsplash Big ideas are exciting — they motivate people. It’s why it’s can be easier to build an ambitious company than a modest one. But once the real work of building begins, we have to constrain ourselves. Breaking the 12-course meal in our mind into…

Inspired by Jared Spool and Kim Goodwin Photo by Magdiel Damas on Unsplash Focus diminishes peripheral vision. Our work draws us in — tipping headlong, end over end towards the object of our attention. For makers, it’s an occupational hazard. We’re captivated by what we’re creating — where it can…

Photo by Jason Rosewell on Unsplash “The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.” — George Bernard Shaw We know what we already know. This tautology is one of the major roadblocks to communication. We mistakenly think that since we understand something, everyone else…

Photo by Almos Bechtold on Unsplash Everyone in enterprise software talks about ‘Consumerization’. The idea is that the products we use at work are getting easier to use — more like the products we use in our everyday lives. It’s not a new idea, 20 years ago Marc Benioff founded…

Inspired by Joel Spolsky Photo by Matt Artz on Unsplash Have you ever seen the foundation of a house being poured? A crew shows up for a day with a fleet of cement trucks parading by, one by one, filling framed out wooden squares with molten gray sludge. By the…

Inspired by Ryan Singer Photo by Mike Dorner on Unsplash The team was deep in presentation mode — sharing the new dashboard designs with our Product Leader. After 10 minutes of polite squirming, unable to contain himself, he exclaimed, “People don’t use dashboards!” You could hear the frustration in his…