What is actually holding this company back?

• stalled
• stuck
• flat
• not growing
• plateau
• what should i do
• bottleneck

• Is demand arriving?
• Is arriving demand converting?
• Are converted customers staying?
• Is what remains after costs enough?
• Can the business deliver more if it sold more?

• {demand} volume trend
• {conversion} at each stage
• retention or repeat rate
• gross margin per {unit}
• {capacity} utilisation

• Demand
• Conversion
• Retention
• Margin
• Capacity
• Cash

• If
  {demand} is falling and conversion is stable
  Then
  The constraint is demand. Everything else is a distraction this month.
• If
  {demand} is stable and conversion is falling
  Then
  The constraint is the offer or the qualification.
• If
  Acquisition works and customers leave
  Then
  The constraint is retention; fixing acquisition makes it worse.
• If
  Everything works and cash is short
  Then
  The constraint is commercial architecture, not performance.
• If
  {capacity} is full
  Then
  The constraint is delivery; selling more damages the business.

Fill in the five numbers from company records. The one that is worst relative to its own history is the candidate constraint.

Read after 14 days.

• All five numbers present
• One constraint named with its evidence

• Fewer than three of the five numbers exist — the mission becomes measurement, honestly stated

• A constraint is named → Work only on it until it moves or is disproven.
• Nothing can be named → Instrument the business; that is the constraint.

Aury can carry out: read company, prepare document, file memory, daily brief. Specialists involved: strategy, finance, research.

Works for any business with countable demand, conversion and delivery.

A single constraint is a simplification. It is a useful one because it forces sequence, but two can bind at once.

• Sourced operator experience: Constraint-based operating practice
• Aurygine synthesis: Aurygine synthesis across founder journeys

Confidence: high. Last reviewed 2026-08-25. Your company's own recorded results override this playbook whenever the two disagree.