There are two myths
in new product development.
One is that process is
supposed to be easy.
It should be natural.
It should flow.
The first hiccup is a signal
that you should quit.
The other is that the process is
supposed to be hard.
Every part of new product development
is a struggle.
Don’t expect anything to go your way.
You have to force yourself
to work on the product.
If it is easy,
it means you’ve missed something.
The easy myth is… well… easy to disprove.
Nothing happens without some effort.
The hard myth is more challenging to disprove.
I find, from my own experience,
that if every step, every action
in a product’s development
is a fight and a struggle,
then it usually is an indication
that I’m forcing a product
no one wants.
In other words,
the product is doomed.
New product development
is neither all easy
nor all hard.