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/