☕️ Frameworks or: How To Make A Cup of Coffee
How frameworks help us think with more structure and do things better • 5 min read
How we think about the world around us has a deep impact in how well we understand it, and how good our decisions are. Most of our contributions towards the arts, sciences, and other fields come about from actions done in specific steps according to what conditions are in place. Navigating this complexity can make or break the tasks that we tackle.
As a general concept, a framework can be defined as a basic structure underlying a system or concept. Its etymology suggests the original word was coined sometime in the 1640s to mean "a [physical] structure for enclosing or supporting", and it would later take on the added definition above in the early 1800s. In short, a framework helps us make sense of what surrounds us.
I. A coffee
So, how can frameworks help us? Here's an example: suppose we'd like to make a cup of instant coffee. To do so, we need to know (1) what we need, (2) in what conditions, and (3) how to use them. Missing one of these three aspects would keep us from having a nice cup of joe: if we're missing the coffee, we're drinking hot water; if we use cold water, it won't taste very well; and if I don’t know how to use a spoon, then the coffee won’t find itself in the cup. None of these options would have me caffeinated and ready for the day.
Let's start by listing out all of the ingredients and items necessary for our kitchen alchemy:
Coffee cup
Coffee
Kettle
Water
Spoon
Extras (Sugar, Milk, ...)
Simple enough. You might notice that some of these items are interchangeable or otherwise optional: I could make my coffee in a bowl, or use a fork instead of a spoon. Those wouldn't be ideal, but they would get the job done.
Now we should consider how we'd like things to be.
The utensils should be clean
The perishable food should be well before it's best before date
The water should be hot
Almost there. Let's talk about how everything will be used. There are two facets to this step: how each individual step should go and how they interact with each other. An example of the former is how to pour hot water from the kettle into the cup; an example of the latter is knowing that adding the water to the coffee before the milk allows the coffee to dissolve better. The steps could look something like this:
Take out all of the items
Pour water in the kettle to boil
Use the spoon to add the coffee and sugar to the mug
Once the water's boiled, fill half of the cup with it
Use the spoon to stir the coffee until everything is fully mixed
Add a bit of milk
Use the spoon to stir it again
Just like some items could be interchanged, there’s latitude in this step as well. We could have taken out the items as we needed, or skipped the milk entirely, for example. And therein lies a characteristic of most frameworks: they're often not the only way to structure a process or idea. Different frameworks have advantages and disadvantages depending on the issue being tackled.
II. Better frameworks
The variance in frameworks means that some of them might not be very useful. Good techniques to employ when making a framework are ensuring it's MECE and working from top to bottom. Let's take a look at each.
MECE
If you do your best to ensure that the framework you're using is Mutually Exclusive, Comprehensively Exhaustive then you save yourself from duplicate work and ensure that you don't miss any important areas. Having mutually exclusive segments means that there's no overlap between them and that you're not double counting or conflating their sub-items; comprehensively exhaustive means that you account for every single point that's relevant, leaving nothing out. You might notice that in the coffee example above the ingredients are discrete and are collectively exhaustive because of the "Extras" segment, therefore the structure is MECE. It's not always possible for every framework to be MECE, but it goes a long way if it's as MECE as possible.
Top down
While it's perfectly acceptable to work bottom up for many frameworks, getting used to working top-down and unpacking segments is a terrific muscle to build because it allows you to easily drill deeper whenever you need more clarity in an area. For the coffee example, it means that instead of thinking that all of the items and ingredients add up to a hot cup of coffee, we visualize the coffee being broken up into its component parts in a tree. This means that if we go down to coffee, for example, we can still unpack it into origin, quality, and other characteristics that might affect how good our coffee turns out.
III. Why it matters
No one needs an advanced degree in chemistry to make a cup of coffee, but the beauty of understanding this example becomes apparent once you think of more complex situations.
Let's say we're trying to understand how the coffee bean market works. In the simplest terms, it's a balance between two segments: supply and demand. The former deals with how much coffee is provided to the market, and the latter describes how it's purchased. Studying supply and demand gives us a lot of insights into how prices change given how likely the actors are willing to buy or sell, seeing as supply is driven by the companies and demand is pursued by the customers. Looking at it a bit more closely means we can further segment the companies to consider their characteristics and sub-divide customers into the different types of buyers. At each level we gather new insights that help us understand the bigger picture a bit better.
Frameworks like supply and demand have been battle tested and their effects thoroughly studied. Other famous frameworks include Porter's Five Forces and the 3 C's, and even equations can be considered frameworks since they describe the relationship between different elements.
We all structure, segment, and prioritize in our day to day lives, and being more intentional about refining our structures can ensure we don't miss anything and are the most efficient possible. Just like making a cup of coffee, there are many right answers, but some hold advantages when it comes to ease of use and sturdiness. In the coming weeks I'll be sharing a few frameworks that I've found helpful in my day to day working in product.
Three things I enjoyed this week
🎼 One song
Tim Henson's Blood Moon – at just under 50 seconds, this tune blends virtuoso guitar licks with a simple EDM backing track. It was made to be put on repeat.
📹 One video
CNBC's How The West Coast Drought Could Cause More ‘Water Wars’ – great synopsis of the challenges the US West Coast is facing in terms of water shortage. Having lived through Cape Town's own water crisis has made me more aware of how challenging water shortages can be, and this report helps pain an insightful picture into where it’s headed.
📖 One article
Julian Shapiro's Starting Principles – a simple framework on how to act on advice. We routinely come across principles but rarely work towards cementing them into routine behaviors: this article provides a straightforward plan on how to practice them and grow.