Successful consumer products tap into one of the seven deadly sins. But the goal of good design is to sublimate those impulses into something that helps users become their better selves.
Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn, shared his early investment thesis: look for products that tap into one or more of the seven deadly sins, because those drives are universal.
The seven are pride, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, wrath, and sloth.
A product that connects with these fundamental drives is more likely to capture attention and achieve scale.
Consider the examples: The earliest phase of the internet was driven by lust. Twitter runs on wrath. LinkedIn appeals to vanity.
The important nuance is what happens next. Hoffman argues that good technologists should not help people wallow in their vices. The goal is to help users move toward a better version of themselves. A product can use a strong motive to get attention, but it still needs a path that leaves the user better off.
This reminds me of Four Reasons to Post and Octalysis Motivation Framework.