It might paint a pretty picture for investors, but when you bring it to the dev team, you realize you have no idea how to get started. The level of detail in your roadmap is far from adequate.

I just read the latest biography of Elon Musk, so let’s put the problem in his terms. Say you’re starting an electric car company, let’s call it Edison. Your plan is to begin by producing a car that you’ll sell at a high price to cover R&D and the initially high production costs. Then, as they come down, you’ll introduce a cheaper model. Sounds like a solid roadmap. What do you do first?

This is when someone shouts, “MVP!” What’s the least you can build to test your growth hypothesis and value hypothesis? Is it four wheels and a chasis? You’re starting an electric car company, so you want to include an electric drive train. Brakes and the ability to steer seem pretty necessary, too, nevermind regulatory requirements. This list is getting longer; your minimum viable product is becoming not-so-minimal. The guys at Intercom would say, “Don’t build a wedding cake (higher production costs), start with a cupcake (lower production costs).” But that presupposes that the experience of your metaphorical wedding cake (an awesome electric car) can be captured in the cupcake equivalent (electric car * cupcake = ???).

This isn’t panning out for you. You need a new approach. How about asking:

What’s the least amount of time it will take me to build something truly valuable and what will that be? — That’s what I should go do.

So, instead of attempting to build your “MVP” of an electric car, you’re focused on producing a best-in-class battery pack. In other words, you’re aiming to create value as quickly as possible.

With that in mind, run the numbers to see if this plan will work. Hypothetically reduce your organization to the bare minimum to required to produce the battery pack and gain enough traction to grow your organization. Based on your reduced workforce, calculate your new operating cost and figure out how long you can afford to keep the doors open. Will you make it?

If no, you have two choices: raise money or give up. You can’t pick a different goal, you already chose the most attainable one.

If yes and just barely, do the hard thing and turn those hypothetical reductions into reality. It might help to keep in mind that, since your company will go under if you don’t, the people you will ask to leave would be searching for a new job soon either way, and at least you’ll be keeping some.

If yes and with money to spare, repeat the exercise above: what’s the next least amount of time it will take to build the something that’s truly valuable and what will that be? Adjust the hypothetical changes you make to your workforce, if need be. Recalculate your runway. Will you make it? If yes, what’s the next thing? Etc.

This is what I’m doing now; I’m excited to see if it will work. I haven’t heard of approaching product roadmaps from this perspective, so I can’t tap into anyone’s experience. That being said, I’m wondering if this might just be a preliminary step before conceptualizing your MVP where you scale your aspirations to your burn rate (a battery startup instead of an electric car startup). What are your thoughts, have you tried this? Good idea or bad idea? If you care to, let me know, below.

Instead, I’m thinking about all the things I could have done (but didn’t) to have been less injury prone. It’s one of those things that you don’t fully appreciate until it’s gone. And, once my ankle stops hurting, I’ll again become accustomed to being physically sound and my appreciation for it will fade.

Except it isn’t that I didn’t appreciate running at all, it’s that I didn’t appreciate it enough to take all the necessary precautions or preventative measures to avoid injury.

Lately, I’ve found it incredibly empowering and rewarding to do good things for myself. This relates to something else I’ve been thinking about: having explicit intentions when I start an endeavor.

I see life as a string of moments, almost any of which can blossom into an experience of dimension and depth…or pass by unnoticed. So I’m starting writing with the intention of making the most of my moments through reflection.

I will get more from my present by examining these moments, more from my future by heading into it with whatever I create or find while doing so, and more from my past by creating something to which I can return.