A brass balance scale holds several small wooden blocks opposite a single gray block.

Original artwork, not a still

Fred Brooks

Study after study shows that the very best designers produce structures that are faster, smaller, simpler, clearer, and produced with less effort. The differences between the great and the average approach an order of magnitude.

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What it means

Our interpretation.

The speaker reports that research consistently finds top designers create work that is quicker to build, more compact, easier to understand and less laborious. In this view, the distance between exceptional and ordinary designers is enormous, approaching tenfold. The claim treats individual talent as a major factor rather than a small edge.

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