two types of ideas
Sat Jun 21 2025there are two kinds of ideas: those that should be scrutinised, and those that should be coddled.
some ideas present clear costs against relatively predictable benefits. they benefit from being picked apart – from a transparent and strict evaluation of costs and benefits, and a thorough accounting of failure modes and unexpected consequences.
on the other hand, the best product ideas are delicate, fragile seedlings germinated from one highly counterintuitive insight. they almost always sound stupid and half-baked and they lack critical detail. The ROI is unclear ("this could be huge, but..."). these ideas should be coddled.
my own business was built upon one of those counterintuitive insights, and I'm not sure that insight would have survived harsh scrutiny.
most people lock themselves into one mode, either bearish scepticism or unquestioning support. it's probably a personality trait as well – some people are amazing at enumerating all the things that could go wrong, while others can hone in on that one magical kernel and pull out something great from an otherwise shitty idea. the best people I know have a keen sense of what type of idea something is, and modulate appropriately what type of feedback to give
scrutiny is harsh, direct sunlight – great for a tall tree, but too much for a fragile seedling. Some decisions need the midday sun; others need a nursery.