First Principles
Strip a problem down to what is undeniably true — then build upward. The reasoning method behind breakthroughs, from Aristotle to Musk.
Reason from what's actually true.
Most thinking is reasoning by analogy — we do what's been done before, slightly better. First principles thinking is the opposite: you decompose a problem into its most fundamental truths that cannot be deduced any further, then reconstruct a solution from those truths alone.
The result is original insight. You stop inheriting assumptions and start seeing what's actually possible — and what's merely assumed to be impossible.
Core Principle — Aristotle"In every systematic inquiry where there are first principles, one must begin with what is most knowable to reason. The first principle is the undemonstrable starting point from which all else follows."
A four-step process.
Name the problem
State the decision in one clear sentence. Vague problems produce vague thinking.
List every assumption
Write down everything you believe true — cost, time, constraints, what's "impossible."
Interrogate each one
Ask: Is this actually true, or just how it's been done? Discard anything unverifiable.
Rebuild from truth
Construct a new solution using only what survived. The path is often dramatically different.
SpaceX and the $90,000 battery.
When Elon Musk wanted to build rockets, the aerospace industry said a launch vehicle couldn't be built for less than $65M. He broke the rocket down to its material constituents — aluminum, titanium, copper, carbon fiber — and found the raw materials cost roughly 2% of a finished rocket.
The "impossible" price was almost entirely manufacturing and margin, not physics. By reasoning from the material truth upward, SpaceX built rockets for a fraction of the prevailing cost and made them reusable. The industry had been reasoning by analogy for decades.
The most expensive assumptions are the ones you've stopped noticing. First principles makes them visible — and replaceable.
Ready to think from first principles?
If you're facing a decision that feels stuck, it's usually because an unexamined assumption is blocking the path. Let's find it.
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