You're Solving For the Wrong Goal

Most goals are proxies.

“I want to make more money.” Why?

“For more freedom.” Why?

“So I don’t miss my son’s baseball games.”

Now you’re solving the right problem.

Ask “why” a few times, and the goal often changes. When it does, better solutions appear, often simpler than the one you started with.

Bad Strategy, Perfectly executed

It's a waste to fret about the dosage before deciding that taking the meds are a good idea in the first place.

We'd get far more agreement on what the high school math curriculum should be if we asked the north-star question: what is school for?

For small, individual or large, culture-changing decisions, answering foundational questions are the only reliable way to make smart decisions downstream. Hard work still matters of course. But how hard will you work to climb a ladder before asking if it's leaning up against the right wall?

The Problem Isn't Too Hard. It's Too Simple.

Big changes rarely require complex solutions.

Sleep better.

Drink more water.

Reduce alcohol.

Walk daily.

Pick one. Just one.

Start or stop it, and let the ripple effect do the rest.

Most problems don’t persist because they’re hard.

They persist because the solution feels too simple to matter.