CODEXCard 1 of 5 · OODA and Maneuver, Core Five
OODA loop
Observe, Orient, Decide, Act, then start over.
The OODA loop is a decision cycle described by the military strategist John Boyd. You observe what is happening, orient by making sense of it, decide on a course of action, act, and then observe the results and go around again. Boyd saw every competitive situation, from air combat to business, as a contest between these loops.
Boyd drew on his experience as a fighter pilot and on years of studying military history. His central claim was that advantage comes less from strength than from tempo. If you can cycle through your loop faster and with better judgment than your opponent, their decisions are always based on an old picture. By the time they act, the world has moved, and their moves land late or in the wrong place.
The common mistake is hearing fast and thinking only about action. Acting quickly without looking or thinking is just reacting, and it often makes things worse. Boyd insisted on all four steps. The speed he cared about was the smooth transition from one step to the next, with no stage skipped and no stage stalled.
The loop's most important stage is orientation, which shapes what you notice and what options you can even imagine. The next card looks at why.
Example
Two food trucks park on the same street. One checks sales every afternoon, notices that the lunch crowd wants cold drinks during a heat wave, and adds iced tea the next day. The other reviews its menu once a season. By the time it adds cold drinks, the first truck has already moved on to shaded seating.
Try it this week
Pick one recurring decision at work this week and shorten the time between seeing new information and acting on it.
From OODA and Maneuver, Core Five (John Boyd · 1976).
