Compare
This one or that one?
Some models are easy to confuse, and some pull in opposite directions. Each comparison says when to reach for which, and how they work together.
Capability map or Wardley map?
Both describe the business independently of today's systems, but they answer different questions. A capability map shows what the business does and where systems overlap. A Wardley map shows how evolved each component is and where it is moving, which tells you how to source it.
Capability Mapping vs Wardley Mapping
Postel's Law or Hyrum's Law?
Postel's Law says be liberal in what you accept. Hyrum's Law says every observable behaviour of an interface will eventually be depended on. The more you quietly accept, the more behaviour others come to rely on, and the harder it is to change.
Postel's Law vs Hyrum's Law
First principles or Gall's Law?
First-principles thinking rebuilds a problem from its fundamentals. Gall's Law warns that a complex system designed from scratch rarely works. One is about how to think about the design; the other is about how to deliver it.
First Principles Thinking vs Gall's Law
Chesterton's Fence or The Algorithm?
The Algorithm says question every requirement and delete parts and steps boldly. Chesterton's Fence says don't remove something until you know why it is there. They look opposed, but both start by asking why a thing exists.
Chesterton's Fence vs The Algorithm: Question, Delete, Simplify, Accelerate, Automate
Lindy Effect or Red Queen Effect?
The Lindy Effect says that what has lasted will probably keep lasting, so prefer proven technology. The Red Queen Effect says you have to keep changing just to keep your place. Each is right in a different part of the system.
Lindy Effect vs Red Queen Effect
Conceptual integrity or guardrails?
Conceptual integrity asks for one coherent set of design ideas. Guardrails let many teams decide for themselves within boundaries. The tension is coherence against autonomy.
Conceptual Integrity vs Guardrails, Not Gates
Margin of safety or antifragility?
A margin of safety adds buffers so a system absorbs shocks. Antifragility designs systems and teams that improve because of shocks. One protects against stress; the other puts it to use.
Margin of Safety vs Antifragility and Chaos Engineering
Three Horizons or pace layering?
Both are about different speeds. Three Horizons splits investment by how soon it pays back. Pace layering splits the architecture by how fast each part should change.
Three Horizons vs Pace Layering
Redesign the work, or replace it gradually?
Hammer says don't automate the old process: redesign the work around the outcome. The Strangler Fig says replace an old system piece by piece, never all at once. One is about what the target should be; the other is about how to get there safely.
Automate or Obliterate vs Strangler Fig