First-principles teardown
Breaks a problem down to what is actually true, then rebuilds a solution without inherited assumptions.
Use it when
An industry 'best practice' feels wrong, or a cost seems impossible to cut.
What you fill in
- problem The problem or the accepted way of doing it
The prompt
Take this problem apart from first principles: problem 1. List the assumptions people usually make about it. Mark each as physics (cannot change), economics (costly but changeable) or convention (habit). 2. For each convention, ask why it exists and whether that reason still holds. 3. Rebuild: describe a solution using only the physics and economics constraints. 4. Estimate what the rebuilt approach would cost or save versus the usual way, with the arithmetic shown. 5. The first experiment to test it, sized to one week. Be concrete and quantitative where you can. Before you answer, check your draft against every instruction above and fix anything that misses.
Why it works
- Classifies assumptions so you know which ones can move.
- Shows the arithmetic, so the claim can be checked.
- Ends with a one-week test.