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Successful people set constraints rather than chasing goals


A few years ago, I sat across from a friend at a late dinner. He was telling me about his new promotion, the big title, the bonus, the corner office. I remember watching his face as he described it. He looked like someone describing a story he’d once believed

When John Boyd, the brilliant / irascible military strategist, developed the OODA loop, he worked within the limits of jet fighter dogfights. In WWII, when allied bombers returned to base riddled with bullet holes, engineers initially proposed reinforcing the areas with the most damage. A small team that decides, "We will not hire until we have product-market fit" has created a constraint that guides decisions without locking in a prediction.

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