Idea Ripper // ArchiveCards: 1555 [Live] | Updated: 2026-10-14
Card #c1227IR // #c1227Synthesis

"Most ship owners had in fact considered the idea of putting different kinds of products into the same sized boxes as fairly abstruse."

— In our words · Source: How to Take Smart Notes (Sönke Ahrens)

[Use when]

Experts defend a custom process that performs well at one step and slows down the whole chain.

[Why it matters]

Experienced stevedores could pack a hold better than any standard container. Malcom McLean's container won anyway, because standardizing the unit made every step around it faster and cheaper. Ahrens argues standard notes work the same way.

Filed under situations:When a rival’s move changes your gameWhen it’s day one and nothing exists yet

More from How to Take Smart Notes

#c1208"The trick is that he did not organise his notes by topic, but in the rather abstract way of giving them fixed numbers. The numbers bore no…Your files or notes are sorted into categories that no longer match how you actually think about the work. #c1209"By restricting ourselves to one format, we also restrict ourselves to just one idea per note and force ourselves to be as precise and…You're building a library of ideas, research or reusable material and want the pieces to combine later. #c1210"Write exactly one note for each idea and write as if you were writing for someone else: Use full sentences, disclose your sources, make…You're capturing anything you expect to use in writing, a pitch or a decision months from now.

Same situation, different book

#c1346Call every advertiser your competitors haveYou're looking for your first customers and your competitors publish who theirs are.From Cancel Me If You Can #c1330Make them try to be like youYou're the outsider in a field and feel pressure to imitate the incumbents.From Courage Can Save Us #c1297Stack new edges before the old one diesYour current advantage is working well and you've stopped developing a replacement.From Trade Outside the Box #c1248Build the campaign before you know the candidateA big decision is still pending and you could start building the capability any outcome will need.From This Is the Plan