Possibly the most common error of a smart engineer is to optimise a thing that should not exist.
— Elon Musk
Make the requirements less dumb
Every requirement must have an owner — a named person who understands why it exists and is accountable for it. Requirements from smart people are the most dangerous because they go unquestioned. Challenge every single one, regardless of source. The person who wrote the requirement must defend it.
Remove the part or process
Ruthlessly cut parts, processes, and steps. If you aren't occasionally adding something back that you deleted, you aren't deleting enough. The bias should always be toward removal — the right answer is less, not more. This is the hardest step because it requires overriding every instinct to preserve.
Optimize the design
Only simplify what survives deletion. The most common mistake is optimizing a thing that should not exist. Simplify the design, then simplify it again. Add complexity back only when testing proves you must. The third step, not the first.
Shorten cycle time
Now — and only now — speed things up. Shorten the iteration loop, reduce handoffs, compress timelines. But never accelerate a process you should have deleted or a design you should have simplified first. Speed amplifies both quality and waste.
Last, never first
Automation is step five for a reason. Automating a broken process locks in the waste and scales it. Only automate what has survived questioning, deletion, simplification, and acceleration. The most common engineering mistake is automating something that should not exist.
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June 2026