Every shipped feature adds surface area. Without a system, surface area turns into drag.
The compounding cost
Each addition raises navigation complexity, onboarding length, and support load. The cost is paid continuously, long after the release.
Systems buy back speed
A real design system makes the tenth feature cheaper than the third, because the decisions have already been made once.
Removal is a feature
Retiring unused surfaces is one of the highest-leverage design activities available to a mature product, and one of the least practised.
