In the early 1900s, Frank and Lillian Gilbreth transformed how the world works — literally.
They were the first to film factory workers and surgeons frame by frame, studying every motion to find unnecessary effort.
When they observed bricklayers, they noticed that the workers were constantly bending down to pick up bricks off the ground. Why not raise the bricks to waist height?
In the emergency room, they observed mistakes and wasted time between surgeons and assistants fumbling over tools. When they created a standardized tool tray, operations became faster and safer.
If you can’t see it, you can’t improve it
Every business is a network of invisible handoffs, delays, and tiny decisions.
Most of us run on “busy mode.” (I’m guilty of this)
Busy. Reactive. Constantly playing “catch up” instead of “keep up.”
Being busy makes us feel productive. But this is a misconception.
And that’s where process mapping comes in.
What is a process map?
A process map is simply a picture of how something moves from start → finish.
Even simple flows can reveal where things break down.
When you create a process map, you get a bird's-eye view of what’s going on:
Bottlenecks jump out
Repeated steps become obvious
You get an idea of what can be automated and delegated
I recently picked up this short and incredibly visual guide
This is the one I referenced in the video — a great place to start.
What you do after mapping the system determines whether your business remains a mess.
Elon Musk’s 5-Step Framework
Once your process map is drawn, run it through Elon Musk’s 5 Step Framework for improving processes. Musk has admitted he’s screwed this up many times before and paid a hefty price for it. When done in the correct order, it works.
Question every requirement
Who required this? Someone’s name should be attached to it.Delete parts or steps
If it doesn’t need to exist, remove it.
The best part is no part.Simplify and optimize the essentials
Simplify. Simplify. Simplify!Accelerate cycle time
Even if you miss deadlines, moving with incredible speed will help you beat the competition.Automate last
Only scale what already works. Otherwise, you are just locking in mistakes.
Take SpaceX’s Raptor engine:
Early versions were complex and expensive.
Through the 5-step framework, the engine has become simpler, stronger, and cheaper.
The evolution of an idea once complexity is removed.
That’s the power of mapping and revising a system in the right order.
If you want more frameworks like this, check out my breakdown of The Great Mental Models. It just reached 250,000 views on YouTube!
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