What makes a product truly great? Is it its many exciting features, its simplicity, its elegance, or the way it integrates into your life? Everyone seems to have a "ground-breaking" opinion. New frameworks and hot takes emerge almost daily. It can be confusing to find direction in this noise-filled environment.
At its core, I believe greatness comes down to one simple principle: focus on one thing and do it exceptionally well. The world may dress up this idea with fancy terms every few years, but the essence remains the same.
When you excel at one thing, you don’t need to be good at many. It’s an intentional trade-off. Products that try to do too much often end up mediocre at best. Spreading your focus too thin creates something that no one truly loves—only something many sort of like—which is dangerous when your goal is to make a real change.
Over time, a product can grow in complexity. Consider the iPhone: what is the one thing it is exceptional at? There isn’t a clear answer because it evolved gradually, making it an outlier you shouldn’t compare yourself to. Instead, look at the iPod. At its peak, the iPod was exceptional at one thing: playing music on the go. As Paul Buchheit points out, it had just three key attributes: it was small enough to fit in your pocket, could hold many hours of music, and was easy to sync. Every decision served its core purpose. That is what great product design looks like. Exceptionalism comes at the cost of relentless focus.
When you begin creating products and solving problems, remember this core question:
What is the one thing my product should be exceptional at?
Then deepen it with:
What are the three key attributes that serve its essence?
This approach will spark thoughtful discussion and force you to confront the hard questions of making something truly great—not just good. To achieve greatness, you must be willing to give up being merely good.