brand manifesto

belief capitalism values narrative adhesion, the ability to keep enough people inside a story long enough that the story stays load-bearing.

Look at the expressed Values of most startups, and you’ll see words like “collaboration” and “agency,” stuff that no sane person would disagree with. Before becoming a public company, J&J made a more explicit stand. https://t.co/aSsRV7clqV

Great code can’t save a story no one understands.

Never underestimate how much people just want to be on a winning team.

Product momentum and narrative momentum are both crucial. It’s probably best to have narrative momentum a little bit ahead of product momentum but not so much that you’re creating a credibility gap. The opposite, product far ahead of narrative, creates a ‘best kept secret’ gap.

Craft without commerciality will not save you when the money runs out

— a note for design founders

Commerciality without any sense of moral responsibility, will have you eaten alive by the public

— a note for mercenary founders

a founder's job is to articulate a specific philosophy and vision of the future, and then cultivate a network that makes it real.