Thrust, Drag and the 10x Effect

To sense if the experiments are moving you in the right direction, you first need to be able to “see” and measure your current system of work. You need to know your starting points. Here we refer again to Dan Terhorst-North’s “visualize, stabilize, optimize.” You first need to be able to visualize steps in a value stream from left to right. You nee

If you try to improve something by 10%, you can almost always solve the problem with brute force and caffeine.

If instead of 10% you try to improve 10x, you completely change the conversation.

Doing more won’t cut it. You can’t go 10x with optimization. You need to radically re-think how you get from A to B.

Only when you make a goal impossible, you’re forced to stop working based on your current assumptions and knowledge.

The most common mental model of work is that it’s like a 100-meter race (not even a 100-meter relay race, just a race)—as if a team is a single runner and can just pick up the pace, improve their conditioning, or improve their technique. Comparing work to a race and your teams to independent athletes obscures the complexity of work and leads to pro

Efficient systems should be organized around the output that wants to be optimized: in our case, the work.

Finally, 10x is not about any specific outcome. It’s about the process. 10x is a capability. It’s an operating system you deploy for: Dramatically expanding your vision and standards Simplifying your strategy and focus Identifying and removing non-essentials Developing mastery in unique areas Leading and empowering others who excitedly share your v