The Next Step

My youngest son really likes helping me and my wife with tasks. Whether it’s cooking, cleaning, or completing chores, he wants to help with every step. After we complete each step of the process, he asks, “What’s next?”. I love this question because it’s such a wonderful mindset to adopt while engaged in active learning. It’s a positive mindset focused on forward progress. There’s no concern about what happened—there’s only the next step, which is a lesson in discovery and momentum.

My simple rule for project management is this: You don’t need to know every step—you just need to know the next step. Not only is this a more effective way to make progress, but it’s also more congruent with reality. You can’t outline all the steps until you do the work. And with the completion of each step, you accrue more knowledge to inform the next step—each step is a prerequisite dependency for moving forward. It’s both ineffective and unproductive to waste time attempting to detail every step. You don’t know, and you won’t until you start chipping away.

My native domain is software development, which is an area I know best and also one that is an excellent example of this process in action. However, I want to add additional examples to further illustrate this point, and how The Next Step can keep us in a state of learning, adaptability, and growth. Like the Paradox of Speed, this is an area where pragmatism and intentionality pays dividends in the work we do.

The Next Step Framework

With this, let’s define a simple framework I’m calling The Next Step Framework, which consists of three key stages built on the premise of defining The Next Step:

1. Map: Define the outcome you are ultimately trying to achieve.
2. Move: Focus solely on The Next Step to move forward.
3. Multiply: Learn and build momentum with each step.

How does this come to life in software development, cooking, and writing?

Let’s explore!

Software Development

Three of my guiding principles in software development are:

1. Better Context: Better context creates better decisions.
2. Fast & Flexible: You need to move fast, yet stay flexible.
3. Learn by Doing: It’s all guesswork until you do the work.

Each of these principles speak to the same fundamental truth: You have to stay agile as you learn, adapt, and grow. And the only way to do that is to focus your efforts on the outcome you’re trying to achieve, and then take it one step at a time, each step building on the last to create a force of momentum that compounds steadily.

When I’m planning work, it’s a process of framing the problem, shaping the solution at the right level of fidelity, and then leaning into the learn-by-doing approach as we build the solution. So how can The Next Step Framework help?

• Map: We start with the outcome, which is the context-loaded problem we’re attempting to solve with software. This is where we’re trying to get to—a solved problem tied to a real and measurable outcome that delivers an impact.
• Move: Instead of detailing each task before the work begins, we shape the work with the appropriate guardrails (clear problem and time constraint) and let the team use that as the compass to detail the work. This is a shift from the guesswork into the real work. We know where we’re trying to get (outcome), and each task along the way is just The Next Step that informs our path as we do the work. We just get moving and learn from each step.
• Multiply: As the team completes each task and works uphill, they answer unknowns in the work, learn from each step, and build momentum. The work is like a hill because the climb is about the unknowns, while the descent is about the clarity of the execution, predicated on cumulative knowledge of all previous steps.

Now let’s move from software development into another creative endeavor: cooking.

Developing Recipes

When a chef is developing a new recipe, they start with a concept. They don’t know exactly how the dish will turn out, but they know the general direction they want to go:

• A hearty, slow-cooked mushroom and root vegetable stew with fresh herbs and pearl barley.
• A bright and zesty lemon-basil pasta with cherry tomatoes, pine nuts, and nutritional yeast.
• A rich chocolate layer cake with coconut buttercream and chocolate ganache.

These are all directions, but there are still unknowns. Take the lemon-basil pasta:

• Will there be lemon juice in the sauce and zest on top?
• What type of pasta will work best?
• Which fresh herbs?

This is where the Map Stage comes into play. A chef is casting vision, direction, and charting the general path without defining the details. Why? Because they know those details will change as the work begins. Like software development, cooking a recipe requires continual experimentation and learning as you cook it. Instead of code and a computer, we have ingredients and a kitchen. Different environments, same process and considerations.

Let’s turn back to The Next Step Framework and walk through each stage:

• Map: The chef outlines the general outcome for the new recipe. They cast this vision in the form of the cuisine. This sets the course.
• Move: The ingredients are gathered and a more localized plan is created. They determine the recipe’s origin, and then begin the cooking process—The Next Step.
• Multiply: Each step allows them to evaluate and readjust—cook the pasta, check the acidity of the sauce, choose the herbs. Each component part is refined through experimentation, creating a cohesive whole.

Now let’s find out how writing novels can take us through a similar process.

Writing Novels

I’m an avid reader, but these days I rarely read fiction. That said, I’m still waiting for George R.R. Martin to finish The Song of Ice and Fire series that’s largely been abandoned since Game of Thrones came out on HBO. And both Harry Potter (I love the movies!) and Dune are on my list to read. And yes, I’ve read many classic novels and fiction since I was a kid.

I point this out because I’m really interested in the stories I’ve read about writers who bring characters to life in their stories, and then operate as a muse as these fictional characters chart their own path. This is a poetic example of The Next Step in action. Like software development and cooking, there’s a theme of creative artistry.

While I’ve read many authors do this, Stephen King is a perfect example. As the author of Carrie, The Shining, IT, and over 65 published novels and short stories, he knows a thing or two about writing and developing stories. As it relates to the idea of The Next Step, King advocates the idea of pantsing, which is writing without a predetermined outline. He believes the role of the writer is to extract the stories rather than force them into a rigid structure. For King, most stories begin with a situation or plot (Map), and then the characters dictate the plot’s progression (Move). He believes that over-planning can stifle creativity, and I couldn’t agree more. The creative solutions will develop and evolve in real-time (Multiply).

This is The Next Step Framework in action:

• Map: The author begins by defining the plot (outcome). The elements are in place, but there are unknowns, questions, and details yet to figure out.
• Move: The characters dictate the path as each action takes place. They follow The Next Step, letting the small, incremental forward movements create the path.
• Multiply: The story organically evolves with novel developments dictated by the previous step. Each step informs the next, guided by the destination.

What’s Next?

Whether you’re building software and leaning into the unknowns, cooking new and inventive meals, or bringing characters to life in a novel, the process is clear: Begin with the end in mind, take each step in turn, and engage in active learning along the way. As you shift from Mapping to Moving to Multiplying, the results of the preceding work fuel the next stage. This creates a flywheel of growth, driven by a simple framework of clear actions.

So when you embark on your next creative journey, find the general path, but don’t mistake the map for the territory. Take each step as it comes, and then ask yourself “What’s next?”.