system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
Why would a thinner layer of compound mixture be better at the start of column chromatography?

I was told that it had something to do with the effective separation of the components in that mixture but i could not reason it out with myself.
gpt
If you apply your compound in a thick layer of solvent, the compound at the bottom has a head start over the compound at the top. Basically, you are spreading out your compounds before you even start running the column. So, you will end up with much thicker bands running down the column instead of nice tight bands.