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No. 335 · Fixing problems · Systems

Bottlenecks

A system can only move as fast as its narrowest point, so find that point first.

Bottlenecks and Constraints are the tight points that limit an entire system. At Thermopylae in 480 BC, a narrow pass let a small Greek force hold back Persia's huge army. Hermès Birkin output is capped by its artisans’ hours, so demand keeps outrunning supply.

When progress stalls, find where work piles up and focus there, whether that's one approval step, one big expense, or a lack of sleep. Fix it, and then look for the next constraint.

In the Almanac

“Thermopylae”, 480 BC · “Hermès”, 2010s

Both stories in full, three ways to use it and where it misleads.

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In the Core Deck

Card C54

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Practise it

Workbook M54

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Bottlenecks / Constraints

Questions

What is Bottlenecks?

Bottlenecks and Constraints are the tight points that limit an entire system. At Thermopylae in 480 BC, a narrow pass let a small Greek force hold back Persia's huge army. Hermès Birkin output is capped by its artisans’ hours, so demand keeps outrunning supply.

How do you use Bottlenecks?

When progress stalls, find where work piles up and focus there, whether that's one approval step, one big expense, or a lack of sleep. Fix it, and then look for the next constraint.

When does Bottlenecks matter?

Bottlenecks is one of the 40 mental models for fixing problems, the situations where you ask: Why does this keep going wrong, and how do I fix it for good? Within that, it belongs to “How systems push back”, alongside Ecosystems, Feedback Loops and Homeostasis.

What is an example of Bottlenecks?

Two stories show it at work: Thermopylae (480 BC) and Hermès (2010s). Both are told in full in The Mental Models Daily Almanac, which has two stories for each of its 365 models.

Which mental models are related to Bottlenecks?

Pareto Principle, Premature Optimisation and Leverage. Bottlenecks itself comes from systems.