# notes --- - [[{5.2} a defensible and personal premise creates a thru-line for your work]] - [[01 - NOTEBOOK/01.40 NOTES/01.31 Fleeting Notes/{4.2} the tyranny of the right answer]] - [[{5.3} build something growable]] - [[{5.2b1b} best practices lead to average work]] # summary --- Jay originally saw that problem in his corner of the business world as average content. But it was deeper than that. What causes average content? Best practices. But still — not deep enough. He finally found the illness: **the tyranny of the right answer**. We don’t trust ourselves because culture tells us that the most important thing is having the *right answer*. This is how Jay arrived at his premise. # highlights --- > What if: You’re smart enough. You’re expert enough. But your IP isn’t strong enough? > > You're producing enough volume, but in all that volume, the work lacks power. > > The power comes from your premise. That's the assertion you make from which everything else follows. >When you develop a premise, I believe it should always start in the same place: frustration… <mark style="background: #D2B3FF;">When I say "problem," I mean something problematic in the culture</mark>, in the norms we just accept, in the history your buyers seemed doom to repeat. It doesn't need to be society-wide, but it does need to exist whether or not YOU do. >Why don't we start with the "for YOU" piece of this? Why do most of us begin our work by turning outward, not inward, seeking right answers? >our self-worth is bottled up in this notion that being smart and valuable and successful means you already know. If you don't know, don't speak up…. don't start by speaking up or figuring it out yourself. Just ask around. Find people who know. They'll tell you the answer. Now you have it. Now you're worthy. >This is why creativity and business often conflict, because you can't KNOW ahead of time that a creative approach will work. That's why it's creative or innovative or artful. >understand which variables were unique to you, not generalized best practices (<mark style="background: #D2B3FF;">your presence in the work + your specific audience + your resource constraints)</mark>, then ask 2 categories of questions in your investigation to understand those variables and incorporate them into your decisions (<mark style="background: #D2B3FF;">trigger questions + confirmation questions</mark>). >Your content isn't where you share the things you already know. It's your attempt to try and understand, inviting the audience along with you.