The Great Mental Models: Systems and Mathematics

Time and time again, great thinkers like Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger have credited their success to mental models: simple representations of how the world works that can be applied in a wide array of contexts. Mastering a small number of these concepts enables you to rapidly grasp new information, identify patterns others don&rsquo;t, and better anticipate outcomes. 
 
The Great Mental Models introduces the most powerful models that anyone can use right away to improve decision making and productivity. In this volume, Shane Parrish introduces simple frameworks borrowed from mathematical and systems thinking, including:<ul><li>Regression to the mean: Over or underperformance over time tends to balance out to the average.</li><li>Margin of safety: To create a robust system, design for the most extreme possible scenario to avoid catastrophe if it does arise.</li><li>The law of diminishing returns: The return on any investment, whether money, time or attention, tends to reduce with each additional unit.</li></ul>Building a latticework of mental models is one of the most powerful things you can do to become a better thinker, leader, or creator. The Great Mental Models is the accessible guide you need to unlock this ability.

Shane Parrish (Author) Shane Parrish is the creator of Farnam Street, the world’s most read blog on the art and science of decision-making. His first book, Clear Thinking, was an instant New York Times bestseller and was described by James Clear as ‘a masterwork’.

Time and time again, great thinkers like Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger have credited their success to mental models: simple representations of how the world works that can be applied in a wide array of contexts. Mastering a small number of these concepts enables you to rapidly grasp new information, identify patterns others don&rsquo;t, and better anticipate outcomes. 
 
The Great Mental Models introduces the most powerful models that anyone can use right away to improve decision making and productivity. In this volume, Shane Parrish introduces simple frameworks borrowed from mathematical and systems thinking, including: 
<ul><li>Regression to the mean: Over or underperformance over time tends to balance out to the average.</li><li>Margin of safety: To create a robust system, design for the most extreme possible scenario to avoid catastrophe if it does arise.</li><li>The law of diminishing returns: The return on any investment, whether money, time or attention, tends to reduce with each additional unit.</li></ul>Building a latticework of mental models is one of the most powerful things you can do to become a better thinker, leader, or creator. The Great Mental Models is the accessible guide you need to unlock this ability.

The Great Mental Models: Economics and Art

A cult bestseller in the US, available around the world for the first time, The Great Mental Models introduces the simple tools we all need to see the world clearly. 
 
Time and time again, great thinkers like Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger have credited their success to mental models: simple representations of how the world works that can be applied in a wide array of contexts. Mastering a small number of these concepts enables you to rapidly grasp new information, identify patterns others don’t, and better anticipate outcomes. 
 
The Great Mental Models introduces the most powerful models that anyone can use right away to improve decision making and productivity. In this volume, Shane Parrish introduces key concepts that both art and economics rely on, including: 
<ul><li>Creative destruction: New innovations must sometimes come at the cost of the maintaining the status quo.</li><li>Representation: The depiction of an idea can be visual, but it can also rely on symbols or other ideas.</li><li>Genre: A form of communication with socially constructed norms developed collaboratively over time.</li></ul> 
Building a latticework of mental models is one of the most powerful things you can do to become a better thinker, leader, or creator. The Great Mental Models is the accessible guide you need to unlock this ability.

Shane Parrish is the creator of Farnam Street, the world’s most read blog on the art and science of decision-making. His first book, Clear Thinking, was an instant New York Times bestseller and was described by James Clear as ‘a masterwork’.

Time and time again, great thinkers like Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger have credited their success to mental models: simple representations of how the world works that can be applied in a wide array of contexts. Mastering a small number of these concepts enables you to rapidly grasp new information, identify patterns others don’t, and better anticipate outcomes. 
 
The Great Mental Models introduces the most powerful models that anyone can use right away to improve decision making and productivity. In this volume, Shane Parrish introduces key concepts that both art and economics rely on, including: 
<ul><li>Creative destruction: New innovations must sometimes come at the cost of the maintaining the status quo.</li><li>Representation: The depiction of an idea can be visual, but it can also rely on symbols or other ideas.</li><li>Genre: A form of communication with socially constructed norms developed collaboratively over time.</li></ul> 
Building a latticework of mental models is one of the most powerful things you can do to become a better thinker, leader, or creator. The Great Mental Models is the accessible guide you need to unlock this ability.

The Great Mental Models: General Thinking Concepts

A cult bestseller in the US, available around the world for the first time, The Great Mental Models introduces the simple tools we all need to see the world clearly. 
 
Time and time again, great thinkers like Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger have credited their success to mental models: simple representations of how the world works that can be applied in a wide array of contexts. Mastering a small number of these concepts enables you to rapidly grasp new information, identify patterns others don&rsquo;t, and better anticipate outcomes. 
 
The Great Mental Models introduces the most powerful models that anyone can use right away to improve decision making and productivity. In this volume, Shane Parrish introduces the universal concepts that underpin better thinking, including: 
<ul><li>Occam&rsquo;s Razor: When faced with competing hypotheses, the simplest explanation is often the best one.</li><li>Circle of competence: We operate optimally in the territory we know best and the quality of our thinking decreases as we venture too far outside our areas of expertise.</li><li>Inversion: To invert a problem is to think about it in reverse, and thereby work out what not to do in response.</li></ul> 
Building a latticework of mental models is one of the most powerful things you can do to become a better thinker, leader, or creator. The Great Mental Models is the accessible guide you need to unlock this ability.

Time and time again, great thinkers like Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger have credited their success to mental models: simple representations of how the world works that can be applied in a wide array of contexts. Mastering a small number of these concepts enables you to rapidly grasp new information, identify patterns others don&rsquo;t, and better anticipate outcomes. 
 
The Great Mental Models introduces the most powerful models that anyone can use right away to improve decision making and productivity. In this volume, Shane Parrish introduces the universal concepts that underpin better thinking, including: 
<ul><li>Occam&rsquo;s Razor: When faced with competing hypotheses, the simplest explanation is often the best one.</li><li>Circle of competence: We operate optimally in the territory we know best and the quality of our thinking decreases as we venture too far outside our areas of expertise.</li><li>Inversion: To invert a problem is to think about it in reverse, and thereby work out what not to do in response.</li></ul> 
Building a latticework of mental models is one of the most powerful things you can do to become a better thinker, leader, or creator. The Great Mental Models is the accessible guide you need to unlock this ability.

Shane Parrish

Rhiannon Beaubien

Time and time again, great thinkers like Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger have credited their success to mental models: simple representations of how the world works that can be applied in a wide array of contexts. Mastering a small number of these concepts enables you to rapidly grasp new information, identify patterns others don&rsquo;t, and better anticipate outcomes. 
 
The Great Mental Models introduces the most powerful models that anyone can use right away to improve decision making and productivity. In this volume, Shane Parrish introduces mental tools borrowed from the hard sciences in language anyone can understand, including: 
<ul><li>Leverage: When the application of a small force to one end results in a larger force at the other end.</li><li>Inertia: An object (or organization) at rest will stay at rest unless acted upon by an external force.</li><li>Activation Energy: The minimum amount of energy required to incite a chemical reaction.</li></ul>Building a latticework of mental models is one of the most powerful things you can do to become a better thinker, leader, or creator. The Great Mental Models is the accessible guide you need to unlock this ability.

Rhiannon Beaubien

Books by Rhiannon Beaubien

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