Product studio for a better future, starting with a better self.
👋 Welcome!
I have built successful consumer and enterprise products across finance (), enterprise SaaS (), health (), media (, ).
First Principles Studio advises and invests entrepreneurs that help us live more purposeful and healthier lives.
Why first principles?
My formative years studying Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at instilled in me the “first-principles thinking” approach: breaking down complex problems into solvable elements → solving each element → reassembling them from the ground up → synthesizing and simplifying the result into clear takeaways.
In pursuit of quick results, many companies unintentionally encourage hacks and imitations than critical thinking. I witnessed how half-baked, low-conviction strategies combined with subpar execution, result in repeated disappointing outcomes.
Similarly, in our personal lives, the TikTok culture exposes our minds to half truths, shoddy reasoning, and false experts.
We can do better. Here we strive to apply first-principles thinking to everything we do—how we diagnose problems, evaluate investment opportunities, and build products.
⛰️ Impact areas: self, community, environment
American novelist Jack London once wrote in 1916,
The proper function of man is to live, not to exist. I shall not waste my days in trying to prolong them. I shall use my time.
Our time is precious. We should strive to make an impact across three dimensions: ourselves, our communities, and our environment.
Self
Progress begins with personal accountability and growth.
Community
We wither in a silo. We thrive as community.
Environment
Lead a more self-reliant lifestyle to build a more sustainable future through our everyday decisions: what we eat, what we wear, how we travel, our energy use, etc.
Quote to ponder on (emphasis is mine):
We can do things for ourselves or we can pay others to do them for us. There are the two “systems” that support us; we might call them the “self-reliance” system and the “organization system.” The former tends to produce self-reliant men and women; the latter tends to produce organization men.
In the modern world ... there has been an enormous and historically unique shift: away from self-reliance and toward organization. As a result, people are becoming less self-reliant and more dependent ... They may claim to be more highly educated than any generation before them; but the fact remains that they cannot really do anything for themselves.
It is in the essence of self-reliance that you start now and don’t wait for something to turn up.
Dr. E.E. Schumacher, CBE (1976)
Suggested readings:
The Comfort Crisis: Embrace Discomfort To Reclaim Your Wild, Happy, Healthy Self
Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones
The Self-Sufficient Life and How to Live It: The Complete Back-to-Basics Guide
Lost Connections: Uncovering the Real Causes of Depression – and the Unexpected Solutions
Think Like a Rocket Scientist: Simple Strategies You Can Use to Make Giant Leaps in Work and Life
🎙️ “Work-In-Progress” Podcast
Wisdom > hustle
Media tends to either glorify or castigate individuals. People are put on pedestals on their way up, and torn down when they inevitably prove to be flawed humans after all—from heroes to villains.
I believe most of us are neither heroes or villains. We are all work in progress—living out our purposes and honing our gifts as best as we can.
The “work-in-progress” podcast distills and source wisdom from successful-yet-under-the-radar makers: many of them are operators at private companies, and many of them local in our own communities.
“Success” in this case is not defined by outsized revenue or wealth. Instead, it’s defined by individuals’ impact in their respective communities, and their thoughtful approach to life.
This podcast is not about sensational headlines; it’s about curiosity and wisdom. Its voice is casual, heartwarming, and insightful.
It does not make you feel bad about wherever you are in life, but instead it challenges and sharpens your perspective, your mindset, and hopefully nudges you to take the next right step.
🔥 Latest episode:
Previous episodes:
👉 Notify me when new episode drops!
🚀 Companies I Actively Advise
Community of software developers getting together to help one another out.
Community
invest + advise
🚀 Companies I Invest In
*Alphabetical & selective list
Remote collaboration, specifically designed for engineering teams.
Enterprise
invest
Natural, organic, and edible coating that extends the shelf life of fresh fruits and vegetables.
Food
invest
MLOps Co-pilot for post model development pipeline with monitoring & observability.
MLOps
invest
Sneak peak ... My work-in-progress mascot:
©2023 First Principles Studio
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