Growth rarely breaks because a company lacks goals. It breaks when goals are disconnected from focus, ownership, and the systems required to execute consistently.
That is what makes frameworks like OKRs valuable when used well: they force clarity around what matters, who owns it, and whether activity is actually producing progress.
The same principle applies to extraordinary business outcomes. Ambition matters, but compounding requires a structure that turns direction into leverage over time.
I explore that broader framework in The Billionaire Gap: The Billionaire Formation Model in Full.
Great read, Chris. I think it’s becoming incredibly easy for teams to generate more tasks & more output now and without clear key results, you can end up very productive on paper but in the wrong direction. Happens both inside companies and with solo ventures too.
💯 agree. I follow my podium methodology - Only 3 Goals. Gold, Silver, Bronze. Gold gets 50% of the resources as it's the 1 goals that drives the flywheel the most that leads to market power. Selection is tough 😳
"Tasks are not part of the OKR framework. But in practice, they are essential." That one line is the diagnosis behind almost every OKR rollout I've watched stall, corporate or personal.
OKRs are a great strategy layer, but on their own they're a sandwich filling with no bread. Without a layer of vision above ("why does this even matter?") and tasks below ("what am I doing on Tuesday morning?"), the framework just floats. Your review-as-learning-loop-not-reporting-exercise point lands equally hard — that's the bit that converts a planning artifact into actual momentum.
Slightly uncanny timing: our book on applying all of this to personal life (Dreams & Deadlines, out next Tuesday) opens Part I with a chapter literally called "What We Learned from Corporate OKRs," and overlaps with maybe 80% of yours — Uber, Microsoft Teams and BlackBerry pull cameo duty alongside the usual Intel/Google story. The metaphor we landed on is a burger; your "missing layer" is our bottom bun. Apologies for the food imagery.
Filing "tension, not targets" for the next workshop. Strong piece.
I think most OKRs projects fail because it's treat as a task itself - too impatient, too wide, too deep. I follow my podium methodology - 3 Goals only. Gold, Silver, Bronze. Gold gets 50% of the time and resources as gold is the 1 goal that drives the flywheel which is what creates market power. Typically the OKRs consolidate around 3 key people at the top (to get 1. Right & 2. Humming) and simply don't cascade for maybe a year. And even then take it slow. Choosing gold becomes the key risk. Google "Chris Tottman 5am Boring Routines on Substack" - I think I write more about it there
My challenge to OKRs (or pretty much anything else) is more about wrong context than wrong application.
Who have you told NOT to use your gold, silver, bronze approach because it’s inappropriate for their context? What were the top three clues you noticed that tipped you off?
Focus is one strategic choice among many, not a law.
You catalogue the common (inevitable) mistakes very clearly.
Having been an advocate of, coach for, and eventually realist about OKRs and corporate life, my take is that the simplicity you mention is both why they propagate *and* why they usually “fail” while succeeding at something else.
Growth rarely breaks because a company lacks goals. It breaks when goals are disconnected from focus, ownership, and the systems required to execute consistently.
That is what makes frameworks like OKRs valuable when used well: they force clarity around what matters, who owns it, and whether activity is actually producing progress.
The same principle applies to extraordinary business outcomes. Ambition matters, but compounding requires a structure that turns direction into leverage over time.
I explore that broader framework in The Billionaire Gap: The Billionaire Formation Model in Full.
A related issue is here:
https://drrichardbushart.substack.com/p/issue-7-the-billionaire-formation?r=8cv3bq&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
Always Reach Higher,
Dr. Richard Bushart
Great read, Chris. I think it’s becoming incredibly easy for teams to generate more tasks & more output now and without clear key results, you can end up very productive on paper but in the wrong direction. Happens both inside companies and with solo ventures too.
💯 agree. I follow my podium methodology - Only 3 Goals. Gold, Silver, Bronze. Gold gets 50% of the resources as it's the 1 goals that drives the flywheel the most that leads to market power. Selection is tough 😳
Chris,
"Tasks are not part of the OKR framework. But in practice, they are essential." That one line is the diagnosis behind almost every OKR rollout I've watched stall, corporate or personal.
OKRs are a great strategy layer, but on their own they're a sandwich filling with no bread. Without a layer of vision above ("why does this even matter?") and tasks below ("what am I doing on Tuesday morning?"), the framework just floats. Your review-as-learning-loop-not-reporting-exercise point lands equally hard — that's the bit that converts a planning artifact into actual momentum.
Slightly uncanny timing: our book on applying all of this to personal life (Dreams & Deadlines, out next Tuesday) opens Part I with a chapter literally called "What We Learned from Corporate OKRs," and overlaps with maybe 80% of yours — Uber, Microsoft Teams and BlackBerry pull cameo duty alongside the usual Intel/Google story. The metaphor we landed on is a burger; your "missing layer" is our bottom bun. Apologies for the food imagery.
Filing "tension, not targets" for the next workshop. Strong piece.
I think most OKRs projects fail because it's treat as a task itself - too impatient, too wide, too deep. I follow my podium methodology - 3 Goals only. Gold, Silver, Bronze. Gold gets 50% of the time and resources as gold is the 1 goal that drives the flywheel which is what creates market power. Typically the OKRs consolidate around 3 key people at the top (to get 1. Right & 2. Humming) and simply don't cascade for maybe a year. And even then take it slow. Choosing gold becomes the key risk. Google "Chris Tottman 5am Boring Routines on Substack" - I think I write more about it there
Agreed on the failure mode.
My challenge to OKRs (or pretty much anything else) is more about wrong context than wrong application.
Who have you told NOT to use your gold, silver, bronze approach because it’s inappropriate for their context? What were the top three clues you noticed that tipped you off?
Focus is one strategic choice among many, not a law.
Great comments. Thanks for sharing your experience and wisdom 👏
You catalogue the common (inevitable) mistakes very clearly.
Having been an advocate of, coach for, and eventually realist about OKRs and corporate life, my take is that the simplicity you mention is both why they propagate *and* why they usually “fail” while succeeding at something else.
https://reach.crownandreach.com/posts/okrs-sound-good-but-they-don-t-work-part-1
Thanks for sharing your wisdom 👏. So I don't have to write it again. Check out my comments to Wolf in the feed.