“Every tool you use impacts your abilities while using that tool. It increases some capabilities while decreasing others.

For example, a chimp fishing for ants with a stick can’t use her hand for another purpose while holding that stick.”

-David Kadavy

Tools perform specific functions, ideally useful ones.

Good tools perform their functions efficiently and are often cheaper, faster, simpler, and/or better than alternatives.

Great tools are transformative. Notable examples include sharpened stones, metal lathes, maps, and alphabets.

The proverbial hammer is great for driving steel nails into wood. But even the best hammer can’t help if the blueprints are wrong.

You say you want your product managers to write better user stories? Changing your word processor won’t help much.

Tools don’t magically fix broken processes, dysfunctional leadership, misaligned incentives, or training gaps.

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