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The idea of improving your tools.that you work with.
Also I came across the principle in 7 habits of highly effective people as 'Sharpen the saw' and that's the first one that comes to my mind.
Although I do like the idea of having a sharp axe and so did Abe Lincoln
The prhase to sharpen the saw may have originated from this quote:
Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe. - Abraham Lincoln quotes
The trap\darkside of thisis to go too far into sharpening the saw. This can lead to premature optimization and yak shaving. It is also a way to procrastinate by spending time managing and building an elaborate or pretty system rather than ploughing on and doing the work.
People who spend hours
optimising their 'Workflows' and organisation systems before doing any work
Building their GTD system, rather than doing the work
Things taken to an extreme resemble their opposite. Principles: Contenders
So the 'productivity' of sharpening the saw morphs into a form of procrastination from doing the work