Startup & VC Jargon · Managing Director level

"First principles"

"First principles" thinking means breaking a problem down to its most basic, fundamental elements and reasoning up from there rather than relying on assumptions or precedent.

Say this instead: from the ground up

How "First principles" shows up at work

Popularized by a specific type of founder and applied enthusiastically in meetings where the existing process could have simply been improved. The phrase signals deep thinking, whether or not any actually occurred.

Buzzword

Let's approach this from first principles and not assume the old model still applies.

Plain English

Let's approach this from the ground up and not assume the old model still applies.

Corporate Rank: Managing Director · Category: Startup & VC Jargon

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