1. The work you do is on the game, not endless rounds of “executive demos” and “press event demos” and other assorted Potemkin villages that ultimately accomplish nothing but make the team feel like hamsters running on a wheel.

2. Pre-launch expectations aren’t skyhigh (that is to say… delusional).

3. There are few conventions/features that you have to include lest everyone cry, “why,” and die.

4. There’s an assumption among users that “launch” is not the starting point, but rather a milestone on a multi-year plan.