Constraints and success become inversely proportional when creative energy is applied. (Robert's Rule #27)

It may be counter-intuitive, but perhaps it's time we saw constraints as a necessary condition for greatness. Take, for example, what Igor Stravinsky said: "the more constraints one imposes, the more one frees one's self...and the arbitrariness of the constraint serves only to obtain precision of execution" (Harvard lectures, 1939-1940). This sentiment is echoed in another (modern) musician, Jake White. (If you haven't yet seen it, take a minute to watch a clip, from Under Great White Northern Lights, that describes his take on this idea - seriously, do it now.)

"That's all fine for musicians", you say, "but what does that have to do with me?"

Often those of us in the tech industry think "if I had ..." and then proceed to fill in that blank with something that will lift a constraint. Over the years we have filled that blank spot with "more RAM" or "a faster drive" or "a faster bus" and so on; meanwhile, NASA's space shuttle is famous in part because of the memory constraint imposed by the technology of the time.

So, how does this relate to you, today? First, and foremost, we can easily point to the spin-off products that we use every day that were developed from NASA patents - products that were initially developed to deal with special constraints around space travel. One of those products, satellite communication, is especially applicable to our (DARPA created) web environment.

Since we're already on the communications track, perhaps we should think about mobile technologies as our next opportunity for greatness. There are several constraints, especially related to web apps, in the mobile space. The limitations of memory, processor speed, bandwidth, and battery life are all constraints that give us the opportunity to create greatness.

Look at it from this perspective - it's very likely that a great mobile web app will be a great desktop web app, because the primary influence determining whether or not people visit/use/return to your site or app (after content/functionality) is speed, and if, with all the constraints in the mobile space, your web app is fast, it should be blisteringly fast in a desktop experience.

I am certain that there are other ways in which constraints can help you achieve greatness. Look for those opportunities to, in the words of one industry leader, "make more awesome".