Thought Audit
Where should you focus? Answer five questions honestly. The one that stings is where you start.
The Five Questions
1. Why does this matter?
Can you articulate what you're building toward and why anyone should care?
| Strong | Weak Signal |
|---|---|
| Clear purpose that attracts others without explanation | Activity without direction. Busy but not building. Decisions feel random. |
Go deeper: Purpose
2. What truths guide you?
Do you have principles that hold under pressure, or do you improvise every decision?
| Strong | Weak Signal |
|---|---|
| Decisions are fast because values are clear. Others can predict what you'd choose. | Every situation feels novel. You second-guess under pressure. No one knows what you stand for. |
Go deeper: Principles
3. What do you see others don't?
Do you have a perspective that earns attention, or are you repeating consensus?
| Strong | Weak Signal |
|---|---|
| People seek your read on things. Your predictions age well. You see patterns before they're named. | You learn what matters from the same sources as everyone else. No edge. No signal worth paying for. |
Go deeper: Perspective
4. What do you control?
Do you own your platform, or are you renting someone else's?
| Strong | Weak Signal |
|---|---|
| Your tools, audience, and data belong to you. You can pivot without permission. | Dependent on a single employer, platform, or client. One decision by someone else changes everything. |
Go deeper: Platform
5. How do you know it's working?
Do you have a scoreboard, or are you guessing?
| Strong | Weak Signal |
|---|---|
| Clear metrics. Feedback loops that compound. You can show progress, not just describe it. | No measurements. Activity feels productive but outcomes are vague. No compounding. |
Go deeper: Performance
Reading Results
The questions are ordered by leverage. Purpose is first because without it, everything else optimizes for the wrong target. Performance is last because it only matters once the other four are clear.
If you're weak on purpose, don't fix your scoreboard. Fix your direction.
If you're strong on purpose but weak on platform, you know what matters but can't act on it. Build the platform.
The pattern: find the first weak link. Fix that. The rest follows.
The Full Matrix
For those who want depth. Fifteen dimensions scored across culture, character, capability, credibility, and consensus capital.
| # | Dimension | Question | Weak Signal |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Principles | What truths guide you? | Decisions feel random |
| 2 | Performance | What matters most? | Activity without outcomes |
| 3 | Platform | What do you control? | Dependent on others |
| 4 | Protocols | How do you standardize? | Success doesn't compound |
| 5 | Players | Who do you need? | Isolated agency |
| 6 | Predictions | What do you forecast? | No bets placed |
| 7 | Perspective | How do you see the game? | No edge, no signal |
| 8 | Persuasion | How do you move others? | Ideas die in your head |
| 9 | Positioning | Where do you stand? | Competing on price |
| 10 | Priorities | What matters most now? | Everything feels urgent |
| 11 | Problems | What's worth solving? | Avoiding the hard ones |
| 12 | Products | How do you solve problems? | Ideas without ships |
| 13 | Progress | Are you moving forward? | No visible improvement |
| 14 | Prompts | What triggers action? | Waiting for motivation |
| 15 | Purpose | Why does this matter? | No answer that survives scrutiny |
Principles
The order is important.
PURPOSE (destination known) ↓ PERFORMANCE (instruments to steer by) ↓ PLATFORM (what ship do we have?) ↓ PROTOCOLS (charts, recipes, pit of success) ↓ PLAYERS (who does what — AI agents vs HiTL)
| # | Principle | Question | Builds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zero to One | How do you create something from nothing? | Conviction |
| 2 | Critical Path | What is the shortest route to viable value? | Clarity |
| 3 | Unit Economics | Does the fundamental math work? | Confidence |
| 4 | Leverage | How do you amplify output without proportional effort? | Capital |
| 5 | Value Capture | Are you capturing the value you create? | Cash Flow |
| 6 | Distribution | How do you reach those who need what you offer? | Customers |
| 7 | Snowball Effect | What creates compounding momentum? | Compounding |
| 8 | Network Effects | Does value increase as participation grows? | Community |
| 9 | Moat | How defensible is your position? | Competitive Advantage |
| 10 | Antifragile | Do you get stronger from chaos? | Resilience |
| 11 | Market Forces | What external pressures shape your decisions? | Context |
| 12 | Opportunity Cost | What is the true cost of your choices? | Discipline |
| 13 | Timing | When matters as much as what—is now the moment? | Patience |
| 14 | Innovator's Dilemma | How would you beat yourself? | Paranoia |
| 15 | Virtuous Feedback Loop | Have you engineered positive feedback loops? | Compounding |