The Messy Middle: Finding Your Way Through the Hardest and Most Crucial Part of Any Bold Venture

Playing the long game requires moves that don’t map to traditional measures of productivity.

First, make a list of the key characteristics and values of the major players in your industry. (If you’re a freelancer, this could be other people your clients consider hiring. If you’re a start-up, it could be the industry incumbents or your competition.) Perhaps they can offer a cheaper price to their clients, a focus on customer service, the sp

a picture is worth a thousand words, then a mock-up answers a thousand questions.

When it comes to speed and efficiency, the greatest risk is taking a shortcut in the one area that distinguishes you the most.

THE EASY PATH WILL ONLY TAKE YOU TO A CROWDED PLACE

As you’re building new products and experiences for customers, consider how they will be novel—even gamelike—before they prove useful.

Great teams are more than the assembly of great people. On the contrary, great teams are ultimately grown, not gathered.

If you feel the need to explain how to use your product rather than empowering new customers to jump in and feel successful on their own, you’ve either failed to design a sufficient first-mile experience or your product is too complicated.

Despite the temptation, don’t focus on “good news” at the expense of what’s going south and how to deliver bad news. In a journey that is so reliant on positive energy and hope, it is vitally important to make consistent time and space where people can focus on what isn’t working.