Topic

First-Principles

A collection of 23 issues

Do you really want more features—or, do you actually want to achieve objectives?

If we rephrase “requirements” as goals and objectives, we will see leaner, more nimble projects that move faster, cost less money and headspace, and lead to more impactful and successful outcomes.

Growing faster and more sustainably on Shopify by adopting a “low-code mentality”

Despite all the best intentions, meticulous discovery, thoughtful design, and careful planning, how many ecommerce brands find themselves 6–12 months after launch of a new or refreshed site in a spiraling cycle of technical debt and increasing maintenance overhead?

Sustainable ecommerce growth has a complexity problem

We need to get back to basics. We need to have a relentless focus on simplicity—on foundational best-practices. We need to eliminate as many of the moving parts as possible to make it easier to diagnose problems and easier to identify the squeaky wheel or where to apply the grease.

What are the foundational first-principles of DTC ecommerce growth?

I’m working on a hypothesis exploring the foundational first-principles of DTC ecommerce growth—and I’d love some feedback.

“Media Champions” Interview

A brief chat about the importance of authentic storytelling, community-building, and some of the changes I am seeing in how consumers are interacting with brands’ websites.

Webinar: How to Stay Nimble as a DTC Brand

Some of my thoughts on how to develop more nimble mindsets in your organization, pragmatism, purpose, and a healthy dose of the first-principles of ecommerce—with a few nimble design and development conceps thrown in at the end.

Beware of the hidden costs of complexity

The more unknown unknowns there are in a design brief or system requirements, the more time is required to understand the core problems in order to design a suitable solution. Keeping things lean enables you to stay nimble, iterate faster, and grow more sustainably.

A first-principles mindset

If you’re building a people-first organization, you will grow faster and require less operational oversight if you develop and encourage a first-principles mindset in your team.

Developing a strategic plan for a new year—the hardest part is getting started

Some say, “the hardest part of running is putting on your shoes.” It’s not actually hard but, if you don’t do it, you won’t go for a run at all.

Designing with data, foundational principles, best practices, and facts

With any complex process, it’s important to separate pre-prescribed solutions from the ultimate goal. It’s important to fully understand the problems and the “whys”—and to avoid jumping to preconceived conclusions. Especially when problems aren’t fully understood in the first place.