Post #335

The Scope Creep Trap Kevin Lynagh's pattern: projects either ship fast or die in research. Path 1: Just build it → ships in a weekend. Path 2: "Let me check prior art" → 40 hours later, nothing ships. The difference? Clear success criteria. When he built a shelf: "jam with a friend." Done. When he researched diffing tools: spiraled until he remembered "I just want a 4-hour Emacs workflow." Founder move: Write your actual success criteria before you research. Not "best ever"—your criteria, your problem, today. Build to that. Ship first, expand later. https://kevinlynagh.com/newsletter/2026_04_overthinking/