Calling a "code red" is a strategic leadership move used to shock the system. Beyond solving an urgent issue, it serves as a loyalty test to identify the most committed team members, build collective confidence through rapid problem-solving, and rally everyone against competitive threats.

To prevent the grind of pursuing massive goals from becoming arduous, Canva creates fun, memorable celebrations for milestones. These events, from smashing Greek plates to releasing doves, serve as important moments for the team to pause, reflect, and feel proud of their hard work.

To move beyond static playbooks, treat your team's ways of working (e.g., meetings, frameworks) as a product. Define the problem they solve, for whom, and what success looks like. This approach allows for public reflection and iterative improvement based on whether the process is achieving its goal.

Employees often reserve their best strategic thinking for complex hobbies. By intentionally designing the work environment with clear rules, goals, and compelling narratives—like a well-designed game—leaders can unlock this latent strategic talent and make work more engaging.

When FigJam felt soulless a month before launch, the team made a controversial decision to differentiate it by making it fun. This seemed frivolous but was strategically crucial for encouraging participation and creative expression in brainstorming sessions, especially during the remote-work era.

True agility isn't just about sprints; it's psychological. By breaking massive projects into minimal viable products (MVPs) or small features, the team creates a steady stream of "quick wins." This builds a sense of progress and happiness—a "dopamine type of reward"—that keeps the wheel of innovation turning and prevents teams from getting bogged down.

When introducing a new skill like user interviews, initially focus on quantity over quality. Creating a competition for the "most interviews" helps people put in the reps needed to build muscle memory. This vanity metric should be temporary and replaced with quality-focused measures once the habit is formed.

Figma learned that removing issues preventing users from adopting the product was as important as adding new features. They systematically tackled these blockers—often table stakes features—and saw a direct, measurable improvement in retention and activation after fixing each one.

Canva operationalizes big ideas using a "chaos to clarity" framework. An initial chaotic idea is progressively clarified through small, tangible steps—starting with writing it down and culminating in a vision deck. This process makes amorphous concepts real, shareable, and easier to build.