# Will Larson Suggests How to Define a Good Goal ## Metadata **Status**:: #x **Zettel**:: #zettel/literature **Created**:: [[2022-10-08]] **Topic**:: [[♯ Management]] **Book**:: [[Calibre 394 - Will Larson - An Elegant Puzzle Systems of Engineering Management|Will Larson - An Elegant Puzzle: Systems of Engineering Management]] **Parent**:: [[Will Larson - An Elegant Puzzle (Highlights)]] ## Notes ### 4 Kinds of Numbers A bad goal is indistinguishable from numbers. A good goal has 4 kinds of numbers: - A target states what we want to reach. - A baseline is the current state. - The trend is how quickly the state changes now. - The time sets up the bound on the goal. A bad goal example: Limit the CI error rate under 5%. A good goal: Limit the CI error rate under 5% in Q4. Now the error rate is 10%. In Q4, it has increased 3%. ### Investment and Baseline Investments are goals that we want to improve. Baseline are states we want to preseve. Without baseline goals, we can complete the goal *Reducing CI wait time by half* by doubling the CI machines. A baseline goal to avoid this looks like: CI expanses should not increase. Baseline goals are restricts to help us to clip the solution space and prioritize different directions.