What even is Efficiency, really?

Efficiency can be effectively defined as an actionable question, which we've come to know as:

The Basic Question of Efficiency

How can equal or greater results be achieved while consuming the least resources?

How does that question help us improve our efficiency?

That's where the RPG system comes in. The RPG system is a way of thinking about efficiency in terms of three concrete concepts in sequence, which allows us to break down and more easily work with the idea of efficiency. These three concepts work together seamlessly to take us from where we are in regards to our efficiency to where we want to be. The three parts to the RPG system are:

• Resources
• Plans
• Goals

Let's quickly define each:

Resources

Resources are the various tools we have at our disposal. They are the means to the end goal. In other words, they are the raw inputs that must be sculpted and leveraged in order to achieve our end goal.

Plans

Plans are the method of organizing, arranging, and aligning our available resources in order to reach our goal. This is the area that deals with the act of sculpting and leveraging our resources into cohesive units that we can then employ in the most efficient capacity possible.

Goals

Our goals are the ends we have in mind: the main task that we want to accomplish through our efforts. Goals always contain some sort of reward (whether internal, external, or both) and must have a set timeframe.

How do resources, plans, and goals work together?

Each of these concepts represents a step along the path to optimized efficiency.

Resources are a starting place, and represent in large part where we are now. In other words, our resources are what we have at our disposal right now that will help us in some way to move from point A (where we currently are) to point B (where we want to go).

Our goal acts as our "point B" and is the ultimate end that we are striving for when embarking on a new endeavor. Our goal dictates our success criteria.

After that comes our plan, which acts as a sort of guide, and leads us along the path from point A to point B. Our plan can only be implemented after we know where we are (which is indicated to us by our resources).

To put it all together: our plan is what allows us to figure out how to use the least resources to achieve the end result: our goal.

If you want to learn more about the RPG system, take a look at our other articles where we delve further into each aspect.