Fall in love with YOU being the problem.
Here's a little reframe on the startup mantra of “fall in love with the problem, not the solution”: turning the lens back on you, the founder.
You are likely the problem in most cases. Or at least, the perpetuator.
And there's no shame in that! We're all flawed human beings in some manner.
(Remember what they say about meeting your heroes...).
What if we embraced our issues with the same curiosity as we did with solving our customers' problems?
In design thinking, we zoom out beyond the specific lack or frustration and look at the "problem space" to see if there are any clues for innovation.
Zoom out from the problem (like this example from a past project reinventing air purifiers)
For instance: "clunky machines that are hard to differentiate":
Purification: you can over-clean air
How might we (HMW) keep healthy phytoncides?
Aesthetics: that's one ugly grey box in your living room
HMW make the purifier the most beautiful artifact at home?
Environment: that's a lot to purify
HMW design personal air space?
You can do the same with your own personal big, hairy problem:
For instance: "shiny object syndrome prevents me from staying on track"
Variety: I have so many ideas
HMW channel those into content creation?
Consistency: I get bored without variety
HMW dose variety with life stuff as a reward for finishing daily tasks?
Environment: (show me your desk space)
HMW design your office into a temple of flow?
Distractions: I have trouble focusing
HMW design a daily focus practice?
Accountability: I get away with bad behavior working solo
HMW build in a witness?
You are a fascinating creature.
Personal gaps don't have to be weaknesses, but curious experiments of improvement and self-mastery. Get familiar with your stuckness and use it as the singular metric to keep things moving!
As a founder, you are mastering the inner game along with the outer one!
