Any great thing is one thing first

What makes the 15,000 notes in Beethoven's 5th Symphony appear to us as ONE musical piece?

It's not just that they're played together. Imagine the same orchestra playing 15,000 random notes—would it sound like music? No, it would be noise.

It’s the relationship between the notes - a structure of hierarchy and repetition that our brains perceive as unity. Every note plays its role perfectly in the whole. How can you tell? Because you can't swap out even a SINGLE note without ruining the ENTIRE piece.

Now..

Think of your software product.
Would the user experience be disrupted if you change or remove ANY feature?.

How about the slides in your deck?
Can you see how changing ANY single slide affects the ENTIRE impact on your audience?

If your answer is ‘no’, or ‘I’m not sure’, then it is not ONE thing.
And it can’t be a GREAT thing until it is.

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