Mental model · Reasoning
Inversion
Inversion: Approaching a goal by asking how you would guarantee the opposite. Now check which of those you are already doing.
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Approaching a goal by asking how you would guarantee the opposite.
Try it now
How could you guarantee that your next project fails? List everything, including the things nobody says out loud.
What to do with the answer
Now check which of those you are already doing. Stopping one is usually cheaper and faster than adding something new.
Where it misleads
Avoiding failure is not the same as producing success. It gives you a floor, not a direction.
The module it belongs to
- Creative Thinking — Generate possibilities and new approaches
The book behind it
- Clear thinking — Its big ideas, in our own words.