Running Lean, 3rd Edition

Chapter 1. Deconstruct Your Idea on a Lean Canvas

When taking on a complex project, like say building a house, you wouldn’t start by putting up walls. You’d start with some kind of an architectural plan or blueprint—even if it’s just a sketch.

Building and launching an idea is no different.

In this chapter, you’ll learn how to deconstruct your idea into a set of key assumptions using a 1-page Lean Canvas (Figure 1-1).

A Lean Canvas can be used to describe a business model, a product release, or even a single feature, making it a highly popular business planning and product management tool that’s used by millions of people around the world.

Figure 1-1. Deconstructing your idea on a 1-page Lean Canvas

Sketching Your First Lean Canvas

A business model describes how you create, deliver, and capture value (get paid) from customers.

Saul Kaplan

In this section, I’ll outline the process of sketching a Lean Canvas for your idea. The result will be a description of how you plan to create, deliver, and capture value from your customers. Here are some guidelines to keep in mind:

Sketch the canvas in one sitting

While it’s tempting to iterate endlessly on the whiteboard, your initial canvas should be sketched quickly—ideally in less than 20 minutes. Unlike a business plan, the goal with a Lean Canvas isn’t to achieve perfection, but to take a snapshot.

Avoid groupthink

If you’re part ...