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I'm allergic to business books, but I think a flywheel is a better metaphor by a mile. A flywheel is a tangible object that everyone has interacted with at some

I'm allergic to business books, but I think a flywheel is a better metaphor by a mile. A flywheel is a tangible object that everyone has interacted with at some point. They're fun and satisfying to spin up to high speed. They are associated with engines and electricity. In contrast, inertia is an abstract concept. It's popularly associated with dead weight. It makes you think of heavy rocks and ships that are too large to maneuver quickly. It's not at all fun.

wakamoleguy 2y ago
I agree. There is an additional quality here as well: Inertia doesn't care whether there is one big push or many little pushes. With the flywheel analogy, it's clear that it's not just one big push. That's what they are trying to convey in the business context. There is no one moment of transformation.
rzzzt 2y ago
"Turn the Ship Around!" is another good book I hear (but did not read): https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16158601-turn-the-ship-around https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16158601-turn-the-ship-a...
lupire 2y ago
Flywheels are only high speed when they are not doing any work. As soon as they start doing work, they slow down. Flywheels are different from positive feedback loops, which is what people usually mean when they talk about flywheels. A flywheel is just a rotational store of energy. It's not. Usefully different from lifting a heavy weight via a pulley, and then releasing it a bit when you need to use it lift something else. It performs the same function as a chargeable electric battery.
adamc 2y ago
I'm sure there are intelligent business books, as there are intelligent people in business, but most of the books I see are awful.
carapace 2y ago
Inertia is not a concept, it's a name for the reason cars have seat belts, for why your blood goes into your fingers when you spin around with your arms outstretched. We don't really know what/why it is, but there's nothing abstract about it and it's not conceptual. Flywheels are inertia.

wakamoleguy 2y ago

I agree. There is an additional quality here as well: Inertia doesn't care whether there is one big push or many little pushes. With the flywheel analogy, it's clear that it's not just one big push. That's what they are trying to convey in the business context. There is no one moment of transformation.

rzzzt 2y ago

"Turn the Ship Around!" is another good book I hear (but did not read): https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16158601-turn-the-ship-around https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16158601-turn-the-ship-a...

lupire 2y ago

Flywheels are only high speed when they are not doing any work. As soon as they start doing work, they slow down. Flywheels are different from positive feedback loops, which is what people usually mean when they talk about flywheels. A flywheel is just a rotational store of energy. It's not. Usefully different from lifting a heavy weight via a pulley, and then releasing it a bit when you need to use it lift something else. It performs the same function as a chargeable electric battery.

adamc 2y ago

I'm sure there are intelligent business books, as there are intelligent people in business, but most of the books I see are awful.

carapace 2y ago

Inertia is not a concept, it's a name for the reason cars have seat belts, for why your blood goes into your fingers when you spin around with your arms outstretched. We don't really know what/why it is, but there's nothing abstract about it and it's not conceptual. Flywheels are inertia.