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My First Million

My First Million

The best business ideas come from noticing what's working and doing it better, faster, or for a different audience.

Back to Mental Models

Parkinson's Law for Priority Discovery

Work expands to fill available time, but when overloaded, only truly important tasks survive - use intentional overload to discover what actually matters

Decision Rule

When unsure what to prioritize, take on more commitments than feels comfortable. What naturally gets done reveals true priorities; what gets dropped wasn't important

How It Works

Forces automatic prioritization through scarcity. When time is unlimited, trivial tasks feel important. When overloaded, only truly valuable activities survive the selection pressure

Failure Modes

Taking on too much without any prioritization framework

Dropping important but non-urgent tasks (like relationship maintenance)

Using overload as excuse for poor planning or organization

Confusing busy-ness with effectiveness

Example Decision

Feeling stuck on what business ideas to pursue, entrepreneur takes on 5 different validation projects simultaneously. After 2 weeks, naturally gravitates toward 2 that generate most excitement and results, while other 3 fade away automatically.