Building a software product is like building a lemonade stand that is on its way toward something bigger -- maybe a restaurant, maybe a stadium, who knows. At

Building a software product is like building a lemonade stand that is on its way toward something bigger -- maybe a restaurant, maybe a stadium, who knows. At every step, it needs to be usable for making money. There's no up-front blueprint, no predictable audience or revenue. You figure it out as you go. Looking at something like a physical building, it's obvious that as you figure out what people want and where you need to build, you need to refactor. The plumbing, electrical, HVAC, etc. you need for one phase can be extended... until they can't. Everything needs to be rebuilt along the way. It's R&D, but also needs continual care if you're growing fast.