My First Million
The best business ideas come from noticing what's working and doing it better, faster, or for a different audience.
Edisonian Principle of Design
A product development approach focused on rapid experimentation, immediate feedback, and constant iteration rather than master planning. Named after Edison's approach to invention.
How It Works
Instead of creating comprehensive upfront plans, you build quick prototypes, test them immediately, gather feedback, and iterate rapidly. Success emerges from thousands of small experiments rather than one perfect plan.
Components
Create rapid prototype or demo
Test with real users immediately
Gather specific feedback on what works/doesn't work
Make small iterative changes
Repeat cycle continuously
When to Use
When developing physical products, creating user interfaces, or solving problems where optimal solutions aren't obvious upfront.
When Not to Use
When building infrastructure requiring upfront architecture, regulatory compliance scenarios, or situations where failed experiments have high costs.
Anti-Patterns to Avoid
Example
“Steve Jobs and team creating iPhone keyboard through hundreds of small demos and iterations, with Jobs applying personal taste to each version until achieving the final product.”
Related Knowledge
Maintain freedom to work on what you love while building a successful business
Ability to work exclusively on projects you're passionate about, declining lucrative distractions, and having money follow from doing what you love rather than chasing money directly.
delegation_trap
Small Batch Iteration Advantage
A competitive advantage gained by testing products in much smaller batches than competitors, enabling faster feedback loops and more iterations.
Anti-Business Billionaire Framework
A framework identifying five core traits of entrepreneurs who build massive companies by being contrarian to typical business advice: high disagreeableness, extreme self-confidence, product obsession, total control retention, and refusal to sell at any price.
Family Heirloom Business Model
Viewing your business as a family heirloom to be passed down through generations rather than an asset to be optimized for sale.
Go Slow Now to Go Fast Later
Deliberately limiting initial growth to deeply learn fundamentals, enabling exponentially faster growth later when you apply accumulated knowledge.