Beyond the Dashboard | Principle 3: Choose What to Measure
Think like a doctor, not a data collector. Your dashboards should be a cockpit, not a buffet. Every metric has a cost in attention, fueling debate and cognitive load. Track only what informs decisions. If a number doesn't drive action, it's just noise.
TL;DR (for teams still adding metrics like it’s a hobby):
- Every metric has a cost. Not money, but something worse: attention. Metrics consume focus, fuel debate, and create cognitive load.
- Track only what informs decisions. Interesting numbers don’t drive action. Vanity metrics waste leadership energy.
- AI will scale whatever signals you feed it. Garbage in? Smarter-looking garbage out. Choose signals that matter.
- Think cockpit, not buffet. Dashboards should steer, not decorate. Track fewer, sharper, decision-driving metrics.
- Use the 6-question checklist before adding any metric. Every number must earn its place.
This is Principle 3 of the Beyond the Dashboard series.
In Principles 1 and 2, we saw how data obsession creates the illusion of progress, and why data-informed teams lead with judgment, not dashboards.
Now, we tackle the core execution failure: measuring too much, without thinking. Because every metric you track shapes what your team and your AI optimizes for.
Choose wrong, and your AI will scale the wrong outcome at machine speed.