Health is more than growth

Founders often default to thinking about business health as growth. Are we growing? How fast? Compared to last quarter?

Growth is part of the picture, but it’s not the whole picture. A business growing fast can still be unhealthy underneath — bad unit economics, weak retention, fragile operations, burning cash. A business growing slowly can be deeply healthy — strong margins, loyal customers, sustainable systems, durable revenue.

Measuring health well means looking across several dimensions, not just the headline numbers. The pattern of healthy versus unhealthy growth is usually visible in the combination of metrics, not in any single one.

The dimensions of business health

A few dimensions usually deserve attention together.

Growth — top-line revenue, user count,...

Measuring the health of your business