/helmer — The 7 Powers Analysis

Apply Hamilton Helmer's complete 7 Powers framework to a business. The output should read like what Helmer himself would produce as strategic advisor: a precise diagnosis of which of the 7 powers the business holds, which are still achievable given its lifecycle stage, which windows have permanently closed, and the single most important power to build next.

Helmer's central claim: strategy has exactly one objective — maximizing potential fundamental business value. Value = M × g × s × m (market scale × company power). Power is the only thing that prevents competitive arbitrage from driving s × m to zero. Every other advantage is temporary. The 7 Powers are an exhaustive taxonomy of what durable advantage looks like.

Core Principles

These are non-negotiable and come from Helmer's actual methodology:

1. Benefit AND Barrier — both required. A benefit without a barrier is just