Let’s dust off what’s left of high school math, shall we?
Logarithms. Remember those?
A logarithm is the power to which a number must be raised in order to get some other number.
Source: University of Minnesota
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Log10 (1) = 0
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Log10 (10) = 1
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Log10 (100) = 2
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Log10 (1000) = 3
And with base 2:
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Log2 (1) = 0
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Log2 (2) = 1
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Log2 (4) = 2
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Log2 (8) = 3
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Log2 (16) = 4
This may seem far removed from everyday life, but it actually unlocks one of the biggest insights about starting new projects — and not quitting halfway.
Why so many projects die before they begin
Nothing kills more projects than focusing on the wrong things at the wrong time.
Say you want to start a business. You go online and consume advice from founders who are already wildly successful. They talk about business plans, hiring, systems, optimizing for taxes, navigating product–market fit, and building scalable infrastructure.
It’s good advice — for companies doing thousands of sales per day.
But it’s not the advice you need to make your first sale.
People listen to experts and assume they need to have everything figured out before taking the first step. That’s simply not true. You don’t need the tools required at Level 100 when you’re still at Level 1.
The same applies elsewhere:
- Want to start running? You don’t need expensive shoes, a coach, or a perfect technique. You need to go outside and run your first run.
- Want to start cooking? You don’t need a professional knife set and ten cookbooks. You just need to cook your first meal.
When beginners fail, it’s rarely because the goal was impossible — it’s almost always because they tried to start at Level 100 instead of Level 1.
The logarithmic framework for building anything
Let’s apply logarithms — specifically base 10 — to show how progress naturally unfolds:
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Log10 (1) = 0
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Log10 (10) = 1
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Log10 (100) = 2
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Log10 (1000) = 3
Each logarithmic “jump” represents a new level of complexity.
Level 1 → Your first client / run / project / meal / date
At Level 1, nothing needs to be scalable or automated. You don’t need systems, branding, funnels, ads, paid tools, a mission statement, or a perfect user interface.
You just need to get your first result.
When I launched my camping business, I asked myself:
“What do I need to have in place to make the first sale?”
The answer was simple:
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Make people aware of the offer
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Give them a place to book and pay
I built a basic Shopify site and promoted the business on free platforms like Kijiji and Facebook Marketplace. I didn’t even buy equipment until someone ordered. My first sale came within days.
Had I tried to build for 100 sales instead of 1 — I would still be planning.
The rule is simple:
👉 Consume information and build systems only for the level you’re currently on.
It speeds you up — and prevents overwhelm.
Level 10 → Your first 10 results
Once you unlock Level 1, you build systems for 10 clients / 10 runs / 10 projects.
These systems don’t have to be scalable either — they just need to work for this level.
When I launched Monthly Method, I worked one-on-one with clients at discounted rates. It wasn’t scalable, but it helped me unlock the 10-client milestone.
Don’t even think about mass reach, automation, or viral growth at this stage.
Just focus on getting to 10.
Level 100 → Serious scale
Only once you master Level 10 do you build the systems needed for 100 clients.
This is the stage for automation, hiring, outsourcing, CRMs, funnels, paid tools, and design. Not before.
What if leveling up in steps of 10 feels too large?
Then use binary logarithms instead:
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1 → 2 → 4 → 8 → 16 → 32 → 64
This version works beautifully for goals like fitness, weight loss, dating, writing, practicing a skill — anything where progress is gradual.
- What do you need to do to get your first ____? (e.g., lose the first pound)
- What do you need to do to get your first two ____? (e.g., lose 2 pounds)
- What do you need to do to get your first four ____? (e.g., lose 4 pounds)
- What do you need to do to get your first eight ____? (e.g., lose 8 pounds)
- What do you need to do to get your first sixteen ____? (e.g., lose 16 pounds)
- Etc.
Overwhelm & analysis paralysis
This logarithmic framework when used in combination with Agile is the simplest and most effective tool to avoid overwhelm and confusion.
You put a mental boundary for how far you can go in your anxiety, overwhelm, and analysis paralysis. There is not much to stress about when you only need to make 1 sale, lose 1 pound, or get 1 job interview. All of a sudden, the whole adventure doesn’t seem so daunting and confusing.
You have much more confidence that you can unlock this first level, so you are more likely to actually start doing things.
Confusion brings procrastination.
Clarity brings action.
Once you unlock the first logarithmic level, you get enough knowledge to make you confident that you can unlock the second level.
It will save your money, too
The logarithmic framework stops you from buying for your fantasy future.
No:
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automation software before you need it,
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unnecessary equipment,
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“just in case” inventory,
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expensive branding before you have proof of demand.
You can’t justify spending $10,000 on a website when you don’t even have your first sale. And in most cases, you can make that first sale without a website at all.
Treat your goals like a video game
You don’t sit down with a new game and panic about Level 10.
You just start Level 1.
You don’t have the skills or tools for Level 10 yet — and that’s okay, because Level 1 gives you the experience that unlocks Level 2… and so on.
Projects work the exact same way. Rest assured that you will gain enough knowledge, skills and resources to unlock future levels when the time comes.
When Shopify’s President confirmed the logarithmic framework
The first startup I worked for was in Ottawa, the hometown of Shopify. We once had Harley Finkelstein give a talk in our office. We were at about 20 people and going through a lot of change.
There is one thing that stuck with me over the years and influenced the development of this logarithmic framework.
He said, don’t get attached to the rules and systems you currently have at your company. You will have to change how you do everything every time you double in size. Just get used to it.
When it’s just you, you have certain rules and systems in place to get things done.
When you bring in your first employee, you double your company in size. You now have to change how you do things. Suddenly, you need to work on your communication, right things down that you used to keep in your head, have meetings, etc.
When you hit 4-5 people mark, you have to change things once again.
And it happens every single time you double in size.
1 → 2 → 4 → 8 → 16 → 32 → 64 → 128
However, a lot of startup employees get frustrated by having to change how they do things. “It worked perfectly fine before.” Yes, but you were a different-sized company. You were at a different logarithmic level.
Logarithmic Framework & Agile
The reason why I’m such a big fan of this framework is that it fits perfectly with the Agile sprint planning methodology, my preferred productivity method.
A 3-week sprint is a perfect amount of time to implement systems in place to unlock the first level.
Yes, you can have your first sale/job interview/date/workout within a 3-week period. (I teach a step-by-step system for planning and running your personal agile sprints here.)
When we look at the Manifesto for Agile Software Development (“The Bible” of Agile), we see how ignoring the things not needed at the moment is at its core:
Simplicity – the art of maximizing the amount of work not done – is essential.
One of the Principles behind the Agile Manifesto
The step-by-step logarithmic framework
To summarize, pick a logarithmic base (2 or 10) and use it to define your step-by-step plan for building a business/workout routine/healthy diet/dating life/etc.
I recommend using Agile to execute these plans. Because ideas are cheap, execution is everything. And Agile is the fastest, most practical framework for shipping tangible results every 3 weeks.
