When the network is congested, looking at the mempool is like watching a cafeteria line: you think you've already handed in your plate, but you're still at the door shuffling forward. Transactions are first held by nodes, broadcast around, and miners/validators pick the ones they like to include in blocks—basically based on transaction fees and various "will this be more profitable" combinations. Sometimes, speeding up just puts you in another line, or even gets you cut in front of and then let through. Recently, the testnet incentives and points system have made everyone anxious, asking daily if the mainnet will issue tokens… The more anxious you are, the easier it is to click randomly in congestion, resend repeatedly, or get replaced, and then blame the chain for being slow. Anyway, I see complexity as the enemy: the less interaction, the better; the less racing for the first second, the better; shorten the execution path first, and keep the heart rate low with less latency.