I spoke with a founder friend who started a new company. The company is well capitalized, but he isn’t sure whether all that capital has helped the company. It’s not growing as fast as he would like, but the amount of capital being consumed monthly is significant.

After we chatted, I thought about this quote:

I think frugality drives innovation, just like other constraints do. One of the only ways to get out of a tight box is to invent your way out.

~ Jeff Bezos

I tend to agree with Bezos. Constraints tend to lead to more innovative solutions because they limit the available options. Constraints force you to think about and solve problems in creative ways. Personally, constraints, even artificial ones, have been a forcing function for focus and creativity.