Learn to Think in Color

What Breaks When a Measure Becomes the Main Target? How Goodhart’s Law quietly sabotages your metrics, teams, and strategy Big Picture Box When a measure becomes the main target, it stops being a reliable window into reality. That’s the heart of the question  “what breaks when a measure becomes the main target?” —you don’t just distort the metric; you distort behavior, systems, and learning. This is the practical face of Goodhart’s Law, coined by Charles Goodhart: once people are rewarded or punished directly on a single number, they start optimizing the number instead of the outcome. In this post, you’ll see what actually breaks, how to spot it early, and how to design targets that guide action instead of warping it. Why Measures Break When They Become Targets When a metric becomes  the  target, four fracture lines usually appear. 1. Behavior Starts to Warp People do what you pay them to do, not what you  meant  to pay them to do. Support teams optimize  t...

How can you quantify the value of intangible business outcomes? March 26, 2025 | Brand Equity, Customer Loyalty, Financial Literacy, Intangible, Measure, Question a Day Question a Day How to Quantify the Value of Intangible Business Outcomes Some of the most  valuable aspects of a business —brand reputation, customer loyalty, employee satisfaction— don’t show up directly on a balance sheet.  Yet, these  intangible assets  drive long-term success just as much as revenue and profit. The challenge?  How do you measure what doesn’t seem measurable? Fortunately, businesses have developed  data-driven methods to quantify intangibles , turning abstract concepts into  actionable insights . Here’s how you can measure the impact of brand equity, innovation, customer experience, and other intangible outcomes.    1. Assign a Financial Value to Brand Equity 🚀  Why It Matters:  A strong brand increases customer trust, pricing power, and market s...

  What Does Visualizing Data Do for Decision Making? 3 November 2024 | Communication, Data Analytics, Data Science, Measure, Pattern Recognition, Question a Day, Strategy Question a Day   What Does Visualizing Data Do for Decision Making? Data visualization has become an essential tool in modern decision-making processes across various industries. By transforming raw data into visual formats—like charts, graphs, and infographics—data visualization helps decision-makers to interpret complex information more intuitively, spot trends, and make informed decisions faster. In this blog post, we'll explore the key benefits of data visualization for decision-making and why it's critical in today's data-driven world. Key Benefits of Data Visualization in Decision-Making Simplifies Complex Data for Better Understanding One of the primary purposes of data visualization is to simplify large datasets, making it easier to comprehend complex information. When data is presented in a visual...

  How to Measure Progress Today, Rather than Just Outcomes? In a world driven by results, it’s easy to focus solely on outcomes. While achieving goals is important, the path toward them—your progress—is just as vital. Measuring progress today means recognizing incremental improvements and ongoing efforts that lead to success over time. This approach fosters sustainable growth and helps you stay motivated even when the final goal seems distant. Here's how you can measure progress effectively, rather than just outcomes. 1. Break Down Large Goals into Small, Achievable Tasks One of the best ways to measure progress is to divide larger goals into smaller, manageable tasks. When you complete a task, you immediately see progress, even if the overall goal is still in the distance. Example : If you're working on a long-term project like writing a book, set daily or weekly writing goals (e.g., write 500 words a day). Each day you hit that goal, you’re making measurable progress. Benefit...