Power of Positive Constraints

Seth Godin recently opened my eyes to the power of positive constraints in a recent interview with Tim Ferriss.

Constraints are core to your ability to create meaningful work. Seth says he broke his arm and nose playing hockey as a kid. He was a terrible player, but knew how to read the game on the ice. And if you’ve ever played hockey on a rink with no boards, that’s an entirely different game. If there are no boards, there is no hockey.

This illustration is a perfect metaphor for entrepreneurs. Seth says he sets constraints all around him. Constraints on how to choose projects, what a project can and can’t entail, which media he’s going to be in, and which he won’t. The constraints are arbitrary. Seth says he makes them up because “it lets me get to the boards without breaking my nose.”

When it came to his famous AltMBA, he set several constraints. The course could have gone in a hundred different directions. So he made constraints about the dropout rate, what tools would be used, and what it would cost. The constraints were set in place before the brainstorming began.

If you think you have a great idea, or you want to start a business, go through the process of deciding on constraints before you embark. Otherwise, you’ll end up with a darling you won’t want to kill later on.

You’ll need to ask some core questions to begin with. What resources are you willing to put into this project? What emotional labor and risk are you willing to expend? Who do you want your customers to be? Seth says if you hate your customers, you’re going to hate your business.

Ask yourself what you want to get out of the project. Are you looking for something that makes every day better, or are you looking to grind through a project so in x number of months, or x number of years from now you win the “prize?”

Look at your project with an agnostic point of view. You’ll see you’ve created puzzles. Puzzles always have constraints and boundaries. You can’t mine asteroids and dominate an industry if you’re only willing to mortgage the house on it. You’ve found a null set within your constraints. You’re goals and you’re constraints are in conflict.

Instead, take a deep breath. Figure out what you are really hoping to do. What does success look like when you’re done?

Conclusion

The key lesson is to take a look at your current situation. Lay out what risk, resources, and time you have available. Now go build your first business around those constraints. You’ll be happy you did.

“Attention is the new gold.” ~ J.P. O’Shaughnessy

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