On building for the few, not the many
Most software is built for everyone and ends up pleasing no one. Let's explore why building for the few is the real path to shipping high-trust, premium products.
Building software today has become a race to the bottom of consensus. We design interfaces for the average, write features for the hypothetical edge case, and smooth out every sharp edge until the product feels like nothing at all.
But the most impactful tools were never built for the crowd. They were built for a specific, uncompromising group of people who care deeply about the details.
The Tyranny of the Average
When you try to please everyone, you introduce compromises. Every pixel must be explained; every configuration must be hidden behind advanced menus. Soon, the tool loses its opinion.
Opinionated software is a joy to use because it makes decisions on your behalf. It assumes:
- Quality over quantity: Fewer features, done to absolute perfection.
- Speed as a feature: If it isn't instant, it is broken.
- Keyboard-first navigation: For those who work here every day.
Designing for High Trust
When you build for the few, you don't need extensive trackers or hand-holding walkthroughs. You respect your users' intelligence and time.
"Most of my choices live on that line — between the rules I keep for everyone, and the few people I'd break them all for."
If you protect the people you design for, they will protect your work. That is the only retention metric that truly matters.