inversion-exerciselisted

# Inversion Exercise ## Overview Flip every assumption and see what still works. Sometimes the opposite reveals the truth. **Core principle:** Inversion exposes hidden assumptions and alternative approaches. ## Quick Reference | Normal Assumption | Inverted | What It Reveals | |-------------------|----------|-----------------| | Cache to reduce latency | Add latency to enable caching | Debouncing patterns | | Pull data when needed | Push data before needed | Prefetching, eager loading | | Handle errors when they occur | Make errors impossible | Type systems, contracts | | Build features users want | Remove features users don't need | Simplicity > addition | | Optimize for common case | Optimize for worst case | Resilience patterns | | Centralize configuration | Distribute configuration | Feature flags, per-tenant config | | Synchronous request → response | Async command → event | Event-driven architecture | ## Process 1. **List core assumptions** — What "must" be true? 2. **Invert each systematically** — "What if the opposite were true?" 3. **Explore implications** — What would we do differently? 4. **Find valid inversions** — Which actually work somewhere? ## Example **Problem:** Users complain the app is slow **Normal approach:** Make everything faster (caching, optimization, CDN) **Inverted:** Make things intentionally slower in some places - Debounce search input (add latency → enable better results, fewer DB hits) - Rate limit requests (add friction → prevent