The Real Problem Isn’t Speed

One of the first ideas I introduced in the session was this:

Most MVPs don’t fail because they’re bad.
They fail because they’re already too expensive to change.

This is something I’ve seen repeatedly working with early-stage startups.

Founders are told to:

• move fast

• ship quickly

• build an MVP as soon as possible

So they do.

But what gets ignored is what happens after something is built.

Once you commit to code:

• changes slow down

• costs increase

• decisions become harder to reverse

So the real issue isn’t speed.

It’s irreversibility.

Speed vs Irreversibility

In the session, I introduced a simple mental model:

• Speed = how fast you move

• Irreversibility = how hard it is to change direction

The goal is not just speed.

The goal is to operate in what I call:

👉 “Fast + Reversible”

As shown in the framework during the session, this is the only zone where startups can move quickly without accumulating risk .

Anything else leads to:

• wasted effort

• expensive pivots

• or getting stuck entirely

The MVP Traps Founders Fall Into

A big part of the session focused on identifying common mistakes.

1. Building Too Much

Many MVPs are not minimal.

They are overloaded with features, trying to impress instead of learn.

As highlighted in the presentation:

👉 Feature-heavy MVPs reduce clarity and slow down learning

2. Starting With Code

Another key point:

“Changing code is 2x more expensive than changing design.”

Yet most teams jump straight into development.

This makes experimentation slower and decisions harder to revisit.

3. Tech Shapes the Product

Instead of designing around user needs, founders often build based on:

• what’s easy to implement

• what their stack supports

This leads to products shaped by constraints rather than problems.

4. No Clear User Moment

One of the most critical mistakes:

👉 Not defining the core moment of value

Instead of validating one key interaction, teams build entire systems.

5. UX Comes Too Late

UX is often treated as something to fix later.

But as discussed in the session:

👉 UX is not a layer — it defines how the product works

Delaying it leads to structural issues that are hard to fix.

The Shift: A Design-Led MVP Approach

After breaking down the problems, we moved into the alternative:

A Design-Led Framework

The approach we explored was simple:

👉 Prototype → Test → Iterate → Build

Instead of committing early, founders learn first.

Step 1: Build the Journey Map

We started with customer journey mapping.

One example from the session was a restaurant kiosk experience.

Instead of jumping into UI screens, we mapped:

• user actions

• emotions

• questions

• friction points

As shown in the journey map:

• users feel rushed during ordering

• confusion appears in menu exploration

• uncertainty happens at payment and pickup stages

This step alone reveals:

👉 where the real problems are
👉 what actually needs to be tested

Source: NN/g

Step 2: Prototype Instead of Build

Next, we moved into prototyping.

The key idea:

You don’t need a full system to test an idea.

Instead of writing backend logic or building infrastructure, we focus on:

• flows

• interactions

• user understanding

Live Demo: Hand Sketch to Prototype

This is where the session shifted from theory to practice.

I moved away from slides and opened my IDE.

Starting with a simple hand-drawn sketch, I showed how to:

1. Translate the idea into UI components

2. Generate a working interface

3. Create a clickable prototype

Using tools like:

• Cursor

• OpenAI Codex

Within minutes, we had something testable.

Not perfect.
Not production-ready.

But enough to:

• simulate user flows

• validate assumptions

• gather feedback

The hand sketch for the demo in the master class.

Live prototype built with AI.

From Code to Design: Refinement in Figma

After generating the prototype, we moved into:

• Figma

This step allowed us to:

• refine UI details

• improve usability

• adjust visual hierarchy

This combination is powerful:

👉 fast generation + structured refinement

The output of the AI, moved to Figma, using Figma MCP.

Step 3: Test and Iterate

Once the prototype exists, the next step is simple:

👉 Put it in front of users

We discussed how to test:

• Do users understand the flow?

• Can they complete key actions?

• Where do they hesitate or drop off?

And most importantly:

👉 iterate quickly

Because nothing is locked yet.

The Process in Practice

At the end of the session, we summarized the workflow:

• Sketch your idea

• Choose a design system

• Build with AI

• Test with users

• Iterate based on feedback

This process allows founders to move:

👉 from idea → validation
👉 without committing to expensive decisions