DRAFT SPEC · v0.1
The table
Ten metrics we count today, and what we would have to start counting instead. Every row has its own link — take one and argue with it on its own.
| Column AThe Growth LedgerWhat we count today | Column BThe Human LedgerWhat we’d have to start counting |
|---|---|
| 01Cost per asset | Copy linkSignal-to-volume ratioOutcome per asset, not assets per month |
| 02Time on site, scroll depth | Copy linkValue-per-minute“Was that a good use of your time?” asked of the audience |
| 03Content output volume | Copy linkOriginality distanceDistance from category convention, and from our own last 12 monthsBreaks Principle One |
| 04Headcount reduction | Copy linkCognitive space ratio% of paid hours spent thinking and making, not QA-ing machine output |
| 05Speed to market | Copy linkRework rateThe assets scrapped after the sprint, the true price of the speed |
| 06AI adoption rate | Copy linkJudgement rate% of AI output a human materially changed. Near-zero means we’ve stopped judging |
| 07User growth | Copy linkVoluntary return ratePeople who come back unprompted, without a notification pulling them |
| 08Engagement, reach, impressions | Copy linkNet annoyanceMutes, hides, blocks, treated as a cost line rather than noise |
| 09Productivity per FTE | Copy linkSkill velocityIs the team getting better, or just faster at the same thing? |
| 10Brand awareness | Copy linkTrust deltaWhat happens to “trustworthy” and “authentic” as our AI content share risesBreaks Principle One |
These numbers are not the proposal. They exist to show what the five principles look like when they have to survive contact with a real P&L. Argue with the principles; treat the numbers as illustration.
And two of them break Principle One. Originality distance and trust delta are merit judgements wearing a number’s clothing — somebody has to decide what counts as original. They are left in because it is worth finding out whether they can be rescued. First person to fix them or kill them wins.
The list
The ledger is a working spec, not a manifesto.
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