Concepts

The irreducible epistemic atoms underlying the curriculum. 4,828 atoms across 8 types and 2 molecules

Document every deviation from standards — repeated silent acceptance normalizes deviance until the standard no longer exists

Treat any deviation from established standards as a potential normalization-of-deviance signal requiring documented evaluation rather than silent acceptance, because repeated deviations without consequence train the system to accept the deviation as normal.

1 lessonstandardsnormalization-of-deviancesafety

Rule

Define your error budget in writing: ideal behavior, minimum acceptable, deviation threshold, and investigation trigger window

For any system you operate, define four components in writing: (1) ideal behavior, (2) minimum acceptable behavior, (3) numeric deviation threshold, and (4) time window before triggering investigation.

1 lessonerror-budgetssystems-thinkingmonitoring

Rule

Express error budgets as numbers with time windows — '2 missed sessions per week' not 'try to be consistent'

Express error budgets as time-bounded numeric thresholds (e.g., 'two missed sessions per week' or '30 minutes downtime per month') rather than vague intentions, and track consumption against the budget as a first-class metric.

1 lessonerror-budgetsmeasurementstandards

Rule

Set RTO and RPO before failure, not during crisis — define maximum acceptable downtime and data loss while thinking clearly

Set Recovery Time Objectives (RTO) that define maximum acceptable downtime and Recovery Point Objectives (RPO) that define maximum acceptable data loss before a failure occurs, not during crisis.

1 lessonrecoverypre-commitmentresilience