Principlev1PR-220
Make goals specific enough to exclude most inputs, because…
Make goals specific enough to exclude most inputs, because vague goals provide no criterion for distinguishing signal from noise.
Why This Is a Principle
Derives from goals functioning as perceptual filters (Goals as Perceptual Filters) and signal detection requiring independent sensitivity and specificity dimensions (Signal detection involves independent dimensions…). The principle prescribes how to formulate goals to make them effective filters—they must exclude, not just include. This is actionable (test if your goal helps you say no) and applies across any domain requiring attention allocation.