Being intentionally tiny enables us to develop products and services specifically tailored to audiences with diverse needs, providing a level of attention and care (and fun) that larger companies cannot offer or compete with.

Ad legend Bill Bernbach letter on creativity, written in 1947:

Dear ________:

Our agency is getting big. That’s something to be happy about. But it’s something to worry about, too, and I don’t mind telling you I’m damned worried. I’m worried that we’re going to fall into the trap of bigness, that we’re going to worship techniques instead of substance

... See more

To me, the ideal life is to take the 20 percent of my time that make me feel most alive and see if I can cut everything else out until that fills everything. Then do that again, cutting the “worst” 80 percent of the best. This is the inverse of how many companies operate. There the ideal is often “growth,” which they take to mean “say yes to all op

... See more

THIS TOO SHALL PASS . This adage of Persian origin is a salve to parents everywhere. “Don’t worry,” it whispers seductively in your ear, “it won’t be like this forever.” And no lies were told. Once you begin to worship at the altar of “This too shall pass” your parenting struggles become something to be endured temporarily, rather than a Sisyphean ... See more

There will always be too much to do – and this realisation is liberating. Today more than ever, there’s just no reason to assume any fit between the demands on your time – all the things you would like to do, or feel you ought to do – and the amount of time available. Thanks to capitalism, technology and human ambition, these demands keep increasin

... See more

The strategy that seems to give people the best chance of success is creating a simple product, with a simple marketing plan – one that only requires a single traffic channel.

Specifically, I’m suggesting that you don’t get started by building a stand-alone subscription software (SaaS) product. Recurring revenue is the holy grail for bootstrappers, ... See more

The world of apps—once an exciting canvas for creative exploration—has become repetitive, predictable, and... boring

By contrast, consumer software tools that enhance human agency, that serve us when we are most creative and intentional, are often built by hobbyists and used by a handful of nerds. If such a tool ever gets too successful one of the Marl-serving companies, flush with cash from advertising or growth-hungry venture capital, will acquire it and kill i... See more