"Tienes que ir desde los fundamentos y los primeros principios."

To grasp the essence of this quote, let's start with what it's really saying. At its core, it’s about peeling back the layers of complexity to get to the root of things. Instead of building on assumptions or taking things at face value, you break problems down to their basic elements—their first principles. It’s like saying, "Don’t just accept the recipe. Understand why each ingredient is there and how it works."

Now, let's rewind a bit to the historical context. This approach is famously associated with thinkers like Aristotle and, more recently, innovators like Elon Musk. Musk often talks about first principles thinking as the method that helps him to innovate in areas like space travel and electric cars. Instead of just improving on existing rockets, for example, he asked, "What are the materials needed, and what do they cost?" By breaking the problem down this way, he discovered it was much cheaper to build rockets from scratch.

Imagine you're trying to solve a big problem at work. Let's say you're managing a team and you've been handed a project that's, well, a bit of a mess. Deadlines are looming, resources are tight, and everyone's stressed out. You could dive right in and start patching things up as you go. Or—you could step back and break the problem down to its basics. What’s the core goal of the project? What are the essential tasks needed to achieve that goal? What resources do you truly need? By stripping away the non-essentials, you can create a more streamlined plan.

So how do you put this wisdom to use? Start by questioning assumptions. When faced with a challenge, ask yourself why things are done a certain way. Don't just accept "that's how we've always done it." Dig deeper. Identify the basic components or principles of the problem. Evaluate each one independently. And then—only then—start building your solution.

Picture this: You're an aspiring chef, trying to create a new dish. You could follow a recipe to the letter, but suppose you don’t have all the ingredients? Instead of giving up or running to the store, think about what each ingredient does. Eggs might be a binding agent. Butter adds richness. Once you understand the role each component plays, you can substitute or even improve on the original recipe.

For a more vivid story, let's switch gears. Think about learning to ride a bike. You didn’t start off on a mountain trail, right? You began with the basics—balancing, pedaling, and steering. You might have even started with training wheels. Each fundamental skill built on the last, until you were zipping around the neighborhood. It’s a tangible example of first principles in action: master the basics, and the complex stuff becomes much easier.

In your daily life, whether you're tackling a work project, learning something new, or even cooking dinner, remember this approach. Strip away the fluff. Focus on the fundamentals. Understand the why before the how. It’s not just a smart way to solve problems—it’s a way to think differently, more creatively. And who knows? Maybe you’ll even come up with the next big thing.