#11 The "w/h" ones

Hello friends.

Hope your week is going well.

One of the jobs I find myself doing for clients is organizing and simplifying information. Let's face it, the world is more complex than it used to be. It takes a designed system to untangle information overload. And designing starts with intent.

The best way to uncover intent is understanding the "why" at the root of your work or what you're making. "Why" goes a long way in removing confusion. Where there's no confusion, there's action.

Here are a few questions I constantly ask myself to develop a strong why:

  • Why should this work be done?
  • Why hasn't this been solved well?
  • Will these changes matter in 2 years?

Now I can start thinking about "what" I'm going to do. This means beginning with the end in mind. Knowing what you're trying to accomplish is having the blueprint before you start building the house.

These questions will help you decide what to do:

  • What is my vision for this?
  • What has been done before and what can I learn from the past?
  • What unknowns do I need to research?

My last step is choosing the "how." Virtually every endeavor will have multiple "hows" to achieve their "what." But you have to choose a direction. The key is finding a direction that fulfills your "why."

Ask yourself these questions to determine your how:

  • How much time and effort are required to accomplish it?
  • How will it be produced?
  • How am I going to measure it and know if it succeeds?
  • How might we?

This framework has organized lots of chaos. The answers to these questions will determine your actions.

Pro-tip: Keep asking and answering these questions throughout your work. It will keep away the clutter in your world.

Until next time.

Honestly,

David

P.S. When I'm working, this playlist has been on repeat: Hemingway Mode
P.P.S. Last week I saw The Big Short. They did a great job of making a boring topic interesting.
P.P.P.S. Interested to see if this takes off: Anchor.fm

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