The Great Mental Models: General Thinking Concepts

by Shane Parrish

“A man who has committed a mistake and doesn’t correct it, is committing another mistake.”

It’s much easier to go on thinking what we’ve already been thinking than go through the pain of updating our existing, false beliefs.

But simple ideas are of great value because they can help us prevent complex problems.

The truth is, the only way we can navigate the complexity of reality is through some sort of abstraction.

Ruin is the destination toward which all men rush, each pursuing his own best interest in a society that believes in the freedom of the commons. Freedom in a commons brings ruin to all.”

If we want to identify the principles in a situation to cut through the dogma and the shared belief, there are two techniques we can use: Socratic questioning and the Five Whys.

Technology is fine, but the scientists and engineers only partially think through their problems. They solve certain aspects, but not the total, and as a consequence it is slapping us back in the face very hard.

Identify the problem Define your objective Identify the forces that support change towards your objective Identify the forces that impede change towards the objective Strategize a solution! This may involve both augmenting or adding to the forces in step 3, and reducing or eliminating the forces in step 4.