Business & strategy laws · law 005
Sturgeon's Law
Also known as: Ninety percent of everything is crud
By Shivam Bhandari · Reviewed 31 October 2026 · How we write
what it means
Ninety percent of everything is crud — in any field, most output is mediocre, so quality is judged by the best ten percent.
How Sturgeon's Law works
Sturgeon's law is a reminder that averages mislead. Most ideas, hires, suppliers, ads, and content will be ordinary. The value sits in the small top slice.
It is also freeing: you do not need every experiment to work. You need a process that generates many attempts and is ruthless about keeping only the best.
where it comes from
Science-fiction writer Theodore Sturgeon coined it in the 1950s, defending his genre: critics who judged sci-fi by its worst work should note that 90% of every genre is poor.
Sturgeon's Law examples in business
Content
A brand posts 40 pieces of content a month. Three drive most of the follows and leads; the team studies those and makes more like them.
Hiring
A founder screens 200 applications expecting most to be weak and builds a quick filter so time goes only to the top 20.
Ideas
A product team generates 30 feature ideas, scores them, and builds just three.
How to apply it
- 1Expect most attempts to be average and plan volume accordingly.
- 2Define in advance what the top 10% looks like so you can spot it fast.
- 3Cut the rest quickly rather than polishing mediocre work.
- 4Study your best outputs and turn their traits into a checklist.
common misreading
It is not an excuse for cynicism or for shipping low-quality work yourself. The point is to aim for and recognise the top slice.
ask yourself
What would change if you produced twice as many attempts and kept only the best third?
put it into practice
Frequently asked questions
What is Sturgeon's Law?
Ninety percent of everything is crud — in any field, most output is mediocre, so quality is judged by the best ten percent. Sturgeon's law is a reminder that averages mislead. Most ideas, hires, suppliers, ads, and content will be ordinary. The value sits in the small top slice.
Who came up with Sturgeon's Law?
Science-fiction writer Theodore Sturgeon coined it in the 1950s, defending his genre: critics who judged sci-fi by its worst work should note that 90% of every genre is poor.
How do you apply Sturgeon's Law in business?
1. Expect most attempts to be average and plan volume accordingly. 2. Define in advance what the top 10% looks like so you can spot it fast. 3. Cut the rest quickly rather than polishing mediocre work. 4. Study your best outputs and turn their traits into a checklist.
What is a common misunderstanding of Sturgeon's Law?
It is not an excuse for cynicism or for shipping low-quality work yourself. The point is to aim for and recognise the top slice.