I think your missing the tactical advice here as well, which has to do with how you interact with other people. If you use the example of a piece of art that is going into a gallery, there is a huge difference in the advice you get at the 90% level (ie, you get color, lighting, framing, sequencing, perhaps media technicals). Whereas if you go in and get advice for your project at the 30% phase, you are likely to get feedback on the conceptualizations, themes, media choice, and perhaps even some research notes to follow up on. In other words, this is a similar distinction between what is the long-run and what is the short-run (answer: more variables are in play). So at the most extreme level of abstraction you are correct, but this post is more about understanding there are multiple levels of abstraction over which to optimize. And I do think that's a good lesson for people who are in creative/invetive/entrepreneurial endeavors. Getting an idea to 'gel' or to 'crystalize' is a hugely different process than getting one 'polished'.
Not sure. Applying it to the design. By 30%you should have a general feel for what it's going to do, how it's going to do it, and why. You might even have a rough idea of the interface. This is probably 30%. Asking for criticism at this point is probably invaluable.
