Minimum Viable Product has become the default product development methodology. The basic idea behind MVP is that, rather than clinging on to your big idea, you build something small and iterate fast.

The mistake that most people make is that they confuse MVP for a go-to-market strategy. It's not-MVP is about building product in a structured way that forces you to learn.

The MVP methodology allows you to break product development into a series of steps so you can keep iterating-and improving. But what makes it work is a focus on learning rather than building. Nail the first part down, and the second follows naturally.

• Minimum: Make your learning cycles as short as possible. "If you are not embarrassed by the first version of your product, you've launched too late." - Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn.
• Viable: Test a simple, crystal-clear hypothesis. "Complex ideas are almost always a sign of muddled thinking or a made up problem." -Sam Altman, President of Y Combinator.