SchLock Digital
Journal

Notes on building companies.

Working notes on product validation, venture building, and the discipline of saying no. Written for operators, not search engines.

Published
Validation12 min

Why most digital products fail before launch

They fail at the question, not the code. On the difference between a problem worth solving and a product worth building.

In preparation

The Journal publishes working notes as the model runs. The articles below are in preparation — titles are shown as a preview of what is being written.

Framework11 min

The SchLock validation framework

The tests a thesis must pass before it earns a line of production code — and why a fast, cheap no is the goal.

Company building6 min

Product before company

Most builders incorporate first and look for a product later. We do the opposite, and the order changes everything.

Operating model7 min

Build to spinout

A venture is built to leave. Why independence — not control — is the metric we optimise for from day one.

Principles5 min

Why we think in systems instead of ideas

Ideas are cheap and rarely the constraint. A repeatable system is what compounds — notes on building the machine, not the moment.