Start · 8 Archetypes · The System · Take the Test · About
OPTIMISER
Core function
The Optimiser leads with Facts: refining what is real, improving fit and quality, and turning “working” into “working well.”
An Optimiser doesn’t just accept reality.
An Optimiser upgrades it.
You’re at your best when
- something already works, but needs to become better, cleaner, sharper,
- quality matters and small errors compound into big damage,
- a system needs continuous improvement rather than heroic sprints,
- outcomes must be reliable across edge cases, not just ideal conditions,
- the difference between “good” and “great” is worth pursuing.
Typical strengths
- precise observation of what can be improved (often invisible to others),
- high standards that elevate outcomes over time,
- iterative mindset: measure → adjust → repeat,
- ability to refine processes, products, communication, and craft.
Predictable distortions (how you sabotage yourself)
When your strength becomes a trap, it looks like:
- perfectionism: delaying completion for marginal gains,
- endless iteration: improving what isn’t strategically important,
- micro-control: correcting everything because you can see everything,
- disappointment bias: seeing flaws so quickly that satisfaction becomes impossible.
If you can’t tolerate “good enough,” you’ll never ship — and you’ll call it “excellence.”
Your blind spot
Your blind spot is usually Commitment / Closure (and sometimes Ignition).
You can confuse:
- “it can be better” with
- “it shouldn’t be finished.”
Optimisers can keep refining long after the decision needed is “done.”
What you need from others
Optimisers thrive when other functions ensure direction, closure, and momentum:
- Concepter (keeps refinement aligned with what matters),
- Negotiator (sets boundaries: what is required vs optional),
- Achiever (ships; prevents endless polishing),
- Stabiliser (turns improvements into repeatable standards),
- Star / Compagnon (keeps life and human connection from being reduced to metrics).
If you surround yourself with only Optimisers, you’ll get quality — and never launch.
Practical moves (useful immediately)
1) Define the improvement target
Ask:
- “What metric matters?”
- “What outcome changes if this improves?”
If you can’t answer, stop polishing.
2) Use thresholds, not fantasies
Set:
- minimum acceptable,
- target,
- “stop” rule.
Excellence without a stop rule becomes compulsion.
3) Improve the bottleneck, not the surface
Find what actually limits the system:
- a missing agreement,
- a broken handoff,
- an unclear standard,
Fix that — not the cosmetic layer.
4) Practice “ship then refine”
Release → observe → refine.
If you refuse to ship, you refuse learning.
One-line warning
If your standards prevent completion, they’re not standards.
They’re fear wearing a suit.
→ Explore: the other archetypes.
→ Take: the Transformation Archetype Test.