Addition by Subtraction

A Reminder That to Focus Is to Cut

The best business advice I ever took was from an advisor when we were running First Research. Our industry-focused sales call prep tool was designed for commercial bankers. We knew it worked well for them because we had been bankers. But we started to find that accountants and other B2B sales professionals could benefit from using First Research as well. Luckily one of our advisors realized we were distracted and chasing the wind, and he sent us an email reminding us that the product was built for commercial bankers, and until we dominated that segment, we were wasting time selling to anybody else. I’ll never forget the close of his email. He wrote these words, in bold, and they’re seared into my brain:

Focus, focus, focus. Dominate, dominate, dominate.

I preach the gospel of focus to anybody who will listen, but like some preachers I’m often guilty of not living what I preach. I was sharing all of the great things happening at Schedulefly, and he reminded me that true focus often means subtraction. “To focus, focus, focus is to subtract, subtract, subtract.”

That simple phrase hit home for me. It’s easy to think of focus as pursuing one big goal, but we often forget that pursuing one thing means not pursuing a dozen others. Focus isn’t just about what you do, it’s about what you don’t do.

This idea resonated deeply because it echoes a philosophy I admire: Nassim Taleb’s concept of via negativa, or addition by subtraction. In Taleb’s words, “knowledge grows by subtraction much more than by addition,” meaning we improve by removing what’s unnecessary or harmful. Likewise, entrepreneur Derek Sivers champions a “Hell Yeah or No” approach: “If you’re not saying ‘HELL YEAH!’ about something, say No… When you say no to most things, you leave room in your life to really throw yourself completely into that rare thing that makes you say ‘HELL YEAH!’” Both Taleb and Sivers are pointing to the power of cutting out the noise so you can give your best to what truly matters.

This via negativa mindset has guided us at Schedulefly for years. We’ve long believed it’s almost always better to subtract than to add. For example, we get tons of suggestions and requests for new tools and features. Sure, it’s easy to add something. A few lines of code and boom, new feature. But just because you can add it, doesn’t mean you should. I often remind people that if we added one small feature every week, let’s say 50 per year, in five years the simple software you once loved would be bloated with 250 extra bells and whistles. The result would be the complicated software you now hate. No thanks! We guard our simplicity like a treasure. Our product does a few things really well, and we say “no” to feature requests that don’t serve that core mission. The beauty of Schedulefly has always been its simplicity, and we intend to keep it that way. Addition by subtraction in action.

Focus-via-subtraction also applies to how we run the business day to day. For instance, about 30% of our customers prepay annually. Until now, we’ve had a very labor intensive, manual process to follow upon those renewals, where someone on our team manually emails 100+ renewal notices each month (often multiple follow-ups), then sends invoices and chases payments. Not a great use of time. We’ve decided to stop doing all that manual busywork. Instead, we’re automating 90% of the annual renewal process, freeing up hours of our team’s week while still keeping the important 10% human touch that builds loyalty. We’re doing the same for how we shepherd new free trial sign-ups, automating the repetitive, manual steps so we can focus on personal, high-value interactions. These operational efficiencies are low-hanging fruit, and grabbing them means cutting out needless labor so we can put our energy where it counts.

The same “cut, cut, cut” principle applies to growth and marketing. My friend pointed out that in marketing, every approach can work, but not every approach is right for us. Success comes from subtracting the wrong efforts so the right ones shine. Here are a few examples of what we choose to subtract or avoid:

Chasing the wrong customers. We know exactly who our ideal customers are (independent restaurants and hospitality businesses who value simplicity and authentic, thoughtful service). We’re not trying to be everything to everyone. Saying no to the wrong demographic of customer means we can say yes a whole lot louder to the right ones. Sometimes that even means turning away “good” revenue if it’s not a good fit – counterintuitive, but it prevents distraction and churn in the long run.

New initiatives without ROI. We have a bunch of ideas we’re going to try, from simple integrations to selective partnerships to some modest Meta (Facebook/Instagram) ads. But we’re treating these as experiments. If an initiative isn’t showing clear signs of becoming a “Hell Yeah!” success, we’ll cut it without hesitation. We’re no longer going to keep marginal projects alive out of habit or hope. By subtracting the mediocre, we make room to double down on the winners.

In short, we’re pruning our business like a healthy tree, trimming off the extra shoots so the main branches can thrive. As my friend wisely put it, businesses that struggle are often doing too many things. They rarely consider subtracting even some “good” revenue sources, fearing it will stunt growth, but in reality the opposite is true. By confidently cutting out the lesser priorities, you free up resources to maximize the best opportunities.

I’m grateful for the reminder to keep embracing this mindset. We’ve started using the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) as well, which helps our team prioritize and execute on what matters each week. EOS has been great for forcing us to identify what NOT to do, which is just as important as what to do. The discipline of saying “Not now” or “No” to things, even decent things, is already boosting our productivity. It’s amazing how much you can get done when you remove the clutter and concentrate on the high-impact stuff.

Ultimately, focus is the engine of our growth, and subtraction is the fuel.

Back to the First Research story. We heeded the “Focus, focus, focus. Dominate, dominate, dominate” advice and it worked. By the time we sold that business, we served 95 of the top 100 largest banks in the U.S. and hundreds of community banks. We dominated that space, but it was only that relentless, dog-after-a-ball focus that enabled us to do that, and only after we had done it were we ready to lock in and focus on another vertical.

The same principle drives Schedulefly, but my friend’s recent advice adds a crucial nuance: to truly focus and eventually dominate, you have to constantly cut, cut, cut the things that dilute your focus. Every time we remove an unnecessary feature, stop a low-value task, or say no to an off-target opportunity, we’re strengthening our focus on what makes us great.

So if you’re building a business (or frankly, just building a life), remember that addition often comes from subtraction. Less is more. Sometimes the quickest way forward is by letting go of the stuff holding you back. Focus, focus, focus… means cut, cut, cut. And that’s how we’ll continue to keep Schedulefly simple, effective, and built to dominate our corner of the hospitality industry for years to come.

- Wil