What Are You Optimizing For?

What are You Optimizing For

“Optimize for your North Star metric. Don’t optimize for something that doesn’t make the customer happy.” — Evan Williams, Co-founder of Twitter and Medium.

What are you optimizing for?

As a high-performance coach at Microsoft for several years, I’ve worked with countless individuals and teams who were striving to achieve their best.

One of the most important questions I always ask them is: what are you optimizing for?

This question is crucial because it helps you focus your efforts and resources towards achieving your goals. By understanding what you’re optimizing for, you can make informed decisions about how to allocate your time, money, and energy.

In this article, I’ll explore the concept of optimizing and share some strategies for figuring out what to prioritize.

Whether you’re working on a project at work or trying to improve your personal life, understanding what you’re optimizing for is key to achieving success.

So, let’s dive in and explore this fundamental question together.

What Does It Mean to Optimize for Something?

Optimizing for something means focusing your efforts and resources towards achieving a specific goal or objective.

It involves identifying what matters most and what you want to achieve, and then directing your energy towards that goal.

In the context of business or personal development, optimizing for a specific metric or objective can help ensure that your efforts are aligned with your priorities and that you are making progress towards your goals.

This approach can help you be more efficient and effective in achieving success, as you are directing your resources towards what matters most.

Optimizing Helps You Achieve High Performance

Are you tired of feeling like you’re spinning your wheels, but never really getting anywhere? Do you find yourself constantly juggling a million different tasks, but never feeling like you’re making any real progress?

If so, then it’s time to start thinking about what you’re optimizing for. Optimizing for something means that you’re directing your efforts and resources towards achieving a specific goal or objective.

It’s about identifying what matters most to you and focusing your energy towards that goal.

When you know what you’re working towards, you can make informed decisions about how to allocate your time, money, and energy.

This helps you be more efficient and effective in achieving success, as you’re directing your resources towards what matters most.

But optimizing for something isn’t just about achieving success. It’s also about achieving sustainable success.

When you’re optimizing for something, you’re creating a roadmap for yourself that’s aligned with your priorities and values.

This can help you avoid burnout, stay motivated, and maintain a sense of purpose and direction.

How To Figure Out What to Optimize For

To figure out what to optimize for, I recommend focusing on your objectives, constraints, and high ROI paths.

But it’s not just about getting more done. You also need to know when doing more can actually get you less.

By staying grounded in your objectives, you can ensure that you’re always moving in the right direction.

The beauty of this question is that it applies to all aspects of life, not just business.

Are you optimizing for results or for connection with people?

Are you optimizing for enjoyment along the way or for reward in the end?

By understanding what you’re optimizing for, you can make more informed decisions and achieve greater success in all areas of your life.