Start with the constraint
Why the first conversation on any project should be about what is missing, how long there is, and what is at stake.
Every project I have enjoyed started the same way: someone told me what they could not do, not what they wanted. That is not pessimism. It is the most useful information in the room.
Why constraints first
A wish is a direction. A constraint is a shape. If a client says “we want something bold”, I have a thousand possible projects. If they say “we have six weeks, one printer and a founder who hates blue”, I have one, and it is already half designed.
I ask three questions, in this order:
- What is missing?
- How long is there?
- What is at stake if it does not ship?
The answers fit on a postcard, and the postcard becomes the brief.
A brief that cannot be written on a postcard is a wish list.
What I do with the answers
I put them at the top of every document, and I read them out at the start of every review. When a new idea arrives, I hold it against the postcard. If it helps the first answer and does not break the second, it stays.
A small example
For a print studio last spring the postcard said: no brand, six weeks, busiest season ahead. That ruled out a long discovery phase and a custom typeface. It left room for exactly one strong idea, so we found one.
| Constraint | What it ruled out | What it allowed |
|---|---|---|
| Six weeks | A discovery phase | One strong idea |
| One printer | Fancy finishes | Flat colour |
| Small team | A large system | One page of rules |
What to do on Monday
Ask the three questions in your next kickoff. Write the answers somewhere everyone can see. You will be surprised how often the project gets simpler before anyone has drawn anything.