Frequently asked questions about thinking, epistemology, and cognitive tools. 1675 answers
Tools, checklists, and automated processes are delegation targets.
Use clear criteria to decide what to delegate, what to automate, and what to keep.
Use clear criteria to decide what to delegate, what to automate, and what to keep.
Use clear criteria to decide what to delegate, what to automate, and what to keep.
Use clear criteria to decide what to delegate, what to automate, and what to keep.
List every recurring task you performed this week. For each task, score three dimensions on a 1-5 scale: (1) Irreversibility — how costly is it to fix a poor outcome? (2) Identity-centrality — does this task define who you are or develop a skill only you should develop? (3) Cognitive uniqueness —.
Treating delegation decisions as binary — either you do everything or you hand off everything. The framework collapses when people skip the scoring and rely on gut feel, which is biased toward keeping tasks that feel comfortable and delegating tasks that feel unfamiliar, regardless of strategic.
Use clear criteria to decide what to delegate, what to automate, and what to keep.
Some decisions and responsibilities must remain with you — knowing which ones is a meta-skill.
Some decisions and responsibilities must remain with you — knowing which ones is a meta-skill.
Some decisions and responsibilities must remain with you — knowing which ones is a meta-skill.
Some decisions and responsibilities must remain with you — knowing which ones is a meta-skill.
Some decisions and responsibilities must remain with you — knowing which ones is a meta-skill.
List three to five decisions you have delegated or automated in the past six months — to people, to systems, to habits, or to AI tools. For each one, apply the three-test filter: (1) Does this decision shape my identity or values? (2) Does this decision require context that only I possess? (3).
Treating the non-delegable list as static. The most common failure is building a fixed inventory of things you never delegate and then applying it rigidly regardless of context. What must remain with you changes as your role changes, as your competence develops, and as the stakes of specific.
Some decisions and responsibilities must remain with you — knowing which ones is a meta-skill.
Vague delegation produces vague results. Specify the outcome, constraints, and success criteria before handing anything off.
Vague delegation produces vague results. Specify the outcome, constraints, and success criteria before handing anything off.
Vague delegation produces vague results. Specify the outcome, constraints, and success criteria before handing anything off.
Identify one task you've recently delegated or plan to delegate — to a person, a tool, or an AI system. Write a specification for it using the five-part framework: (1) the desired outcome in concrete terms, (2) the constraints that must not be violated, (3) the success criteria you will use to.
Confusing thoroughness with rigidity. Over-specifying method and micro-managing every step is not clear specification — it is the opposite problem addressed in the next lesson. The failure mode here is specifying *how* when you should be specifying *what* and *when*. Another common failure:.
Vague delegation produces vague results. Specify the outcome, constraints, and success criteria before handing anything off.
Specify the result you want, not the exact steps to get there. This preserves autonomy and invites better solutions.
Specify the result you want, not the exact steps to get there. This preserves autonomy and invites better solutions.