The focus trade-off

  • A 75-minute live-debate class on the strategic power of saying no — cutting a tempting option so
  • the one bet that's working can win.
  • *Presenter note:* say the honest line — this is teaching material, not a certification or credit.

The situation: Sprout

  • Composite app: plans a week of family dinners, makes one shopping list. Parents love it.
  • One team of 8, ~10 months of runway, quietly running THREE bets at once.
  • A. Core app (40,000 families, growing) · B. Restaurant partnerships (famous chef, press, no
  • revenue) · C. Corporate wellness (1 pilot, steady revenue, needs features they lack).
  • *Presenter note:* poll the room — "keep all three, or cut to one?" Mark the split.

The focus trade-off

  • A small team has a fixed stock of people, time, and money.
  • So every "yes" to one thing is a silent "no" to another — there is no spare team hiding.
  • The only choice is whether you price the trade-off on purpose or let it happen by accident.

Focus beats spreading thin

  • Spread a team of 8 across three bets: thin everywhere, strong nowhere — three near-misses.
  • Concentrate the same 8 on one bet: one thing that actually wins, and a win compounds.

Opportunity cost — the price of a "yes"

  • The real cost of an option is the *best thing you gave up* to do it — not the cash it brings in.
  • The tempting option (press, a famous name, fast money) is often the highest-cost one.
  • "Exciting" and "real revenue" aren't reasons to keep it — does it advance the bet you can win?

Your call

  • Pick ONE bet to focus the whole team on: A, B, or C. The other two are cut to "not yet."
  • Price the tempting one: what does Sprout give up if 5 people build restaurant features for 6
  • months?
  • *Presenter note:* every table commits to one letter before the debate.

The defensible read

  • Focus on A, the core app — the only bet with real traction, and it fits Sprout's strength.
  • Cut B (restaurants): exciting, but its true cost is the core app's momentum.
  • Cut C (corporate wellness): plausible revenue, but drags a consumer team into unbuilt
  • enterprise work.

What each choice costs

  • Choosing B: spends the whole team on glamour while the paying, growing core goes cold.
  • Choosing C: trades a working product for a slow B2B build the team isn't staffed for.
  • Choosing A: real cost too — walk away *for now* from the chef, press, and pilot — but one win
  • beats three near-misses, and "not yet" keeps B and C open.
  • *Presenter note:* land the takeaway — the hardest, most valuable strategic move is a well-priced
  • "no."