Less, But Better. In Practice The framework is simple.
Here's how to put it to work.
Over the past three weeks, I’ve shared a framework for simplifying and focusing on what matters, Foundation, Flow, and Growth. This week is about how to begin.
For the past month, I've been applying this framework to Bampt and a new app we're building. It took time and focus , which isn't always easy, but it's worth it. At times it felt completely upside down, like you could hear the hourglass humming. That hum is starting to fade. Every decision is getting easier because we keep coming back to one question: does this serve the core promise?
That clarity has pushed us to sharpen the promise itself, get clearer on who we’re building for, and define the content and channels that make sense for us. It’s also given all those ideas that don’t fit right now a proper home, one we are calling, the Growth wish list. Great ideas, worth revisiting, just not today.
The conclusion I keep landing on: while there are many frameworks for building this one has and is making the phrase “simplify and focus” actionable. And when it’s working, you feel it, things just move with more ease.
How to Begin
This week, answer three questions. Write them down. If you have a team, talk through them together.
Who is our customer? What is our customer promise?
Next week, answer these questions.
What are we maintaining that we don’t use? Where are we building for an imagined future instead of the real one?
Now pick one thing to remove. One process, one tool, one meeting, one piece of documentation. Remove it. See what breaks, probably nothing will. Then notice what opens up when it’s gone. Usually it’s time, and clarity to work on what actually matters.
Next month, revisit your foundation. Is your positioning clear enough to guide decisions? Can you say what you stand for in one sentence? Does your team understand it without having to look it up? If not, that’s where to focus. Everything else, operations, brand, growth, flows from foundation. Get that clear first.
Ongoing, every time you’re about to build something new, run it through three filters. Does this serve what we stand for? Does this create clarity or friction? Does this help us scale what matters? If yes, build it. If not, it goes on the wish list.