3-3-16 improving systems: Scenario planning

All the things we do based on some predictions of the future … you say hi to someone expecting that he will reply the same. If you are sure that he will reply by hitting you, you will never say anything to him

But the one and only sure thing about the future is that you can't be 100% sure of anything

-          The best way to deal with the unknowability of the future is to assume that you can only put some assumptions of what may happen. Of course some assumptions are more probable than others, but all of them has a chance of happening

-          So for anything you try to predict don't be satisfied with one scenario. Write down the best case and worst case scenario and the in-between ones and take measures to be prepared for all of them 

3-3-15 improving systems: Stress testing

Stress testing is one of the best ways to discover weaknesses in your system

You just sit in front of your system and ask yourself this question:

Here is the system, how can I break it?

Then you try every way to break your own system (of course without making permanent damage to it). Then you study what you did actually and see how you can prevent this from happening

-          Stress testing is just about knowing the maximum capacity of the system to do ______  that it breaks if things go beyond this capacity (or the quality becomes too bad)

3-3-14 improving systems: The backup system

For any show there is some backup actors than memorize he role of one or more actor so that they can step in if anything bad happens and the main actor can't perform for any reason. This is the fail-safe system

The point of this is summarized in one sentence:

THE SHOW MUST GO ON

Your business also needs a backup system that can step in and save the situation in case of any failure in the main system

-          It must be separated from the main system; so that a failure or shortage in one of them doesn't affect the other one

-          It will not be the same efficient as the main system, but it will save the situation for a while till the main system is fixed again

-          The best way for a backup system is to be versatile; do as may rules as possible