Legibility, as discussed in [[Seeing Like a State, James Scott(annotated)]], is about making complex realities simpler and easier to manage. States use legibility to transform chaotic systems into something they can control. But this process doesn't just observe the world; it changes it to fit the simplified model. **Examples:** - **Scientific Forestry:** Forests were once diverse ecosystems. To make them legible, states planted only commercially valuable trees. This made forests easier to manage but harmed biodiversity. - **Modern Land Ownership:** Traditional land use involved communal rights, which were hard to regulate. States imposed clear property titles to make land legible. This disrupted traditional practices and caused social issues. - **Annual Planning**: A lot of modern enterprise planning work is about creating legibility to upper-management. TPMs are the priests of legibility, JIRA is their sacrament. Legibility needed to allow central planning for larger organizations, but it comes at a cost with factors like [[McNamara Fallacy]] and [[Goodhart's Law]]. Good organizational design and culture where authority and accountability can be pushed downwards are crucial for organizations to thrive with the minimum amount of legibility. #published 2025-02-09