Stealing Is a Skill
The Art of Strategic Appropriation: Stealing as a Skill
By @DJbennyBuff | June 24, 2026
I am currently curating a personal manifesto of life advice:
- Maintain a creative mindset.
- Commit to radical transparency.
- Document the things that bring you joy.
Following these principles allows you to generate value at an incredible velocity while gaining deep self-awareness. But that isn't provocative enough. I'm actually talking about the act of literally copying someone else's work.
The "3% Approach"
My colleague, Justin, introduced me to a concept pioneered by the late Virgil Abloh known as the 3% approach.
When Abloh reimagined the Air Force 1, he restricted himself to modifying only 3% of the original design. His goal was to avoid erasing the genius of the visionaries who had already perfected the shoe. While Abloh didn't provide a detailed manual, Justin and I adopted this philosophy at Kibu.
I find this method incredibly potent, especially when tackling a project outside your comfort zone. The logic is simple: if you are tasked with changing only 3%, you must first identify which 3% deserves the change.
This requirement forces a total inspection of the original work—every single "stitch and seam." For us, the path to that 3% was to rebuild a project we admired from the ground up.
Case Study: The Kibu Marketing Site
Justin and I wanted to overhaul our marketing page, but we were struggling with a clear vision. We knew we wanted:
- A stunning top-fold.
- A minimal, reusable component library.
We discovered Mintlify’s 2025 site and were captivated. It featured a bold top-fold, a decisive color palette, and a "show, don't tell" philosophy. Since both Mintlify and Kibu are documentation tools (though they define "documentation" differently), it was the perfect reference.
By recreating their work, we uncovered the "story" behind the design. We began asking critical questions:
- How do three consecutive monochrome sections affect the user's psyche?
- Why do the component widths align perfectly with the blurred, floating navbar?
While the site wasn't flawless, mimicking it was the most efficient route to our goal. We then added our own "side quests" to personalize the brand:
| Mintlify Element | Kibu Adaptation |
|---|---|
| Standard CTA Buttons | Added team member photos to CTAs |
| Static Screenshots | Prioritized video demonstrations |
These iterations taught us more about our brand identity than any expensive 3-day corporate workshop ever could. Within a month of weekend sprints, we launched the site using Framer.
A New Perspective on Originality
This experience shifted my entire approach to ideation. I no longer just admire craft; I prioritize "stealing" as a core part of my process. Now, my team and I always ask: "Has someone already solved this?"
Between podcasts, blogs, and AI prompts, the blueprints for almost every problem already exist. Your responsibility is to dive down the rabbit hole, master the 100%, and then apply your 3%.
The Efficiency Paradox
Early in my career, I thought the world rewarded originality. I was wrong.
"The truth is that you’re rewarded for identifying and solving problems efficiently. And odds are, smarter people before you have already done both."
To master this skill, you must treat it as a checklist:
- Identify what to steal.
- Determine why it is worth stealing.
- Decide how much of it to incorporate.
Words of Wisdom
"When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn’t really do it, they just saw something." — Steve Jobs
"Everything I do references something that influenced me." — Virgil Abloh
Technical Notes & Nuances
Note 1: Approach vs. Rule
The 3% approach is a heuristic, not a rigid law. Some blogs treat it as a sacred commandment, but Abloh likely would have disagreed. He used it specifically for the Air Force 1s because he deeply revered the original design.
Note 2: The Tech Stack
In March 2026, we moved away from Framer into a custom codebase. We believe that vibecoding allows for faster iteration than drag-and-drop builders that come with AI limitations and vendor lock-in.
