The Feynman Technique: How to Simplify, Focus & Scale

One of the best techniques I learned in physics is surprisingly helpful for building a business

I Thought I Understood My Business—Until I Tried Explaining It Like This

Back when I was buried in quantum mechanics and equations that made most people’s heads spin, I stumbled on something that helped me truly understand complex ideas: the Feynman Technique. It’s simple. It’s powerful. And honestly, it’s one of the few tools from my PhD in physics that I still use every single day—now as an entrepreneur.

And I’ve found that when it comes to building and running a business, this technique is a secret weapon.

The Problem: If You Can’t Explain It Simply, You Don’t Understand It

Business gets complicated fast. You’re juggling products, processes, positioning, people. And at some point, things start to feel foggy—like you're doing a lot, but you're not really sure what’s working or why.

I ran into this exact wall when trying to articulate what my business actually did in a single sentence. If I, the founder, couldn’t explain it clearly… how could I expect anyone else to get it? That’s when I reached for a tool I’d used hundreds of times in academia.

Wonderful stock Photo by SumUp on Unsplash. I like that there are only uhm, maybe 5 tabs open? Complexity and overwhelm creep in fast.

The Feynman Technique (and Why It Still Works in the Real World)

Richard Feynman, the legendary physicist, had a brilliant approach to learning: if you can’t explain it in simple terms, you don’t really understand it.

Here's how I apply it in business—exactly as I did with dense physics concepts.

1. Pick the Concept

Choose one idea—your offer, your sales funnel, your target customer. Something you think you understand.

2. Explain It in Plain Language

Write it out or speak it aloud as if you're explaining it to a 12-year-old. Strip out all buzzwords and fluff. If you stumble or fall back on jargon, you've found a gap in your understanding.

3. Find What’s Missing

Go back and revisit the parts that felt vague. Ask: Why is this the way it is? Do I actually understand this decision or process? Fill in the holes.

4. Refine Until It’s Crystal Clear

Keep refining until the explanation feels effortless. When you can describe it in under a minute without skipping a beat—you’ve got it.

How This Transformed My Work as an Entrepreneur

🧠 Clarity of Purpose
I used it to distill my business model into a one-liner. Before, I’d ramble for paragraphs. Now? I get straight to the value. People get it—and more importantly, I get it.

🛠 Simplifying Systems
I applied the method to our internal operations and spotted all kinds of inefficiencies I hadn’t seen before. If I couldn’t explain a process simply, I simplified the process.

💬 Sharper Communication
From writing landing pages to briefing my team, this technique forced me to communicate clearly and with zero assumptions. Things just flowed better.

🎯 Better Thinking, Faster Decisions
It’s like mental debugging. Every time I hit a bottleneck or overthink something, I run it through the Feynman filter. It cuts the noise and forces clarity.

Why Every Entrepreneur Should Try This

• You’ll stop hiding behind vague strategy

• You’ll gain confidence in your ideas and decisions

• You’ll build things that are easier to sell, explain, and scale

It might feel strange at first—trying to explain serious business concepts like you’re teaching a 6th grader—but once you do, you’ll wonder why you ever operated any other way.

Whether you’re building your first product or running a multi-team company, try it. Write it out. Say it out loud. Break it down.

You don’t need more complexity—you need clearer thinking. This is how you get there.

Cheers,

Mira