A Spy's Guide to Thinking

by John Braddock

Notice the end: Action. If thinking doesn’t end with action, it’s useless. Taking action is why we think. If you’re thinking just to think, that’s useless, too.

Thinking is what this short book is about. We’ve talked about two tools that help. The Data-Analysis-Decision-Action chain helps us focus on where we might have holes in our thinking. Have we gathered the right data? Are we analyzing it correctly? Are we making the right decisions, as a result? Are our actions in line with our decisions? The Positive-sum/Zero-sum/Negative-sum framework helps us think ahead.