A black box

When planes crash, investigators search for the black box so they can learn what happened and prevent it from happening again.

Big ideas usually don’t get that treatment. Most just disappear. Searching for what went wrong can be uncomfortable. No reflection. No learning. And then the same mistakes repeat in the future.

Figuring out why something failed after it happens is helpful—but figuring out how it could fail before launch is even better.

Ask the Black Box question:
“Why would this fail?”

It almost always comes down to one weak link:
Legitimacy: The problem wasn’t real.
Investment: The commitment wasn’t there.
Force: The wrong people or skills were involved.
Trajectory: There was no clear destination or plan.

If you can spot the weak point early, you can fix it before launch. Or decide not to launch at all.

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Read more about the LIFT FlightPlan